The Queen Of Hearts
by SevmioneAlways
Summary: An old student bumps into an old professor. Common interests ensue. Taking place during the 4th-7th books, Natalia Rook wiggles into a certain potion professor's life unbidden but not unwelcome...after a while at least. Will this woman warm the heart of the cold spy? Will she become the Queen of his heart? This is the revamped Second Version. I deleted the first try, Here is 2nd!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

**AN:** Hi there Guys! I thought this was a good time to start reposting my new edition of my first ever fan fic especially since today is the Three Year Anniversary of when I started this little mess. I really hope you guys enjoy this story and follow along. I am planning on doing a chapter at least every other week, especially since I have so many chapters ready. It may be sometimes more, sometimes less. I am a stay at home mom now, and would love to start writing again! So as this is my revamped attempt at fanfiction, I would appreciate reviews, comments, concerns. Everything helps! The more reviews I get, the better I can do and the more I can write for you all! Thanks! So, without further ado, I present to you the first chapter. Not many changes in this one, so it may look familiar. Just lots of edits with grammar, punctuation, and a few things changed up a wee bit! Enjoy!

**Chapter 1**

She listened to her footsteps, click-clacking down the cobbled street of Diagon Alley. In the early morning, not many shops were open, but those that were were just the ones that she needed. Natalia Rook, accompanied by her tabby familiar, had a singular mission in mind and she had a short amount of time to accomplish said task. Her long, reddish-brown hair that hung to the middle of her back was shining in the morning sun. Her deep blue traveling cloak was staving off the crisp morning air and as she finally got to the shop she desired, she stood outside of it, took a deep breath and smiled. She could smell the damp dew that was condensed on the windows and little bits of grass squiggling between the stones of the streets. She also smelled strong mint, fresh thyme, and rosemary; all hanging from Mr. Mulpepper's hanging pots outside his storefront window.

Mr. Mulpepper's Apothecary has been around for as long as Natalia could remember. She reminisced about coming here with her mother when she was a small child. It was a stop they rarely made and only when her mother needed necessary ingredients to make a pepperup potion, or something similar. He always had the freshest ingredients and the fairest prices. Even fifteen years later, the shop hadn't changed in the slightest and Natalia reveled in that fact. A brilliant grin was upon her lips as she entered the shop with a twinkling of a bell above the door. Mr. Mulpepper looked up from his checkout counter and waved quietly.

"Here again, same time, as usual, Natalia. I should set my watch by you," he joked. With a quick smile, he let her carry on her business and went back to his bookkeeping.

Natalia nodded politely to him, blushed a bit at his comment and proceeded to find her wares. She went down each aisle habitually even though she knew exactly where everything she needed was. Mr. Mulpepper had a certain way of organizing his supplies, it was almost like a library. Natalia took solace in knowing the organization would always be there, yet she strolled through all the aisles to look at the different ingredients for inspiration on different potions and poultices that she can make.

As she meandered through the clean yet cramped rows of produce, Natalia leisurely grabbed the ingredients she needed and placed them neatly in her basket. After she placed the last item on her list away tightly next to her other wares, she quickly went towards the front of the store again. To get there she had to round a few corners and on the last stretch of the room before getting to her destination, she rounded a shelf corner too quickly and bumped directly into a sturdy body. She dropped her basket, her items scurrying away from each other as if they had legs to carry them away.

"Oh, I am so sorry!" she exclaimed as she hurried to pick up all of her supplies. The person she bumped into had also kneeled down and was helping her as she did so. She smiled shyly as she picked up her last item, still not having looked at the person she collided with and put it back in the basket. She looked up and her smile faded immediately. A shocked gasp escaped her lips as she saw the familiar scowl of her past Potions teacher.

"Oh! Professor Snape. I am so sorry to have bumped into you. I apologize. I hope you are not hurt?" She said more like a question. His tired eyes glared and his scowl deepened, almost as if her apologies offended him.

"It is not a problem Ms.-" He cut off, not remembering her name. She blushed but took no offense.

"Rook. Natalia Rook. I was a student of yours. I graduated five years ago. Hufflepuff…" She rambled on, biting her bottom lip nervously between her teeth. He handed her a vial of dragonfly thoraxes and straightened up, his tall stature towering above her average frame. Severus was at least a head and a half taller than she, and with his billowing black cape as if wind forever blows through it, he was as intimidating as ever. His longish raven black hair hung in his face. Some would say his nose protruded too far from his face, but Natalia was always distracted by that nose. How straight and strong it was. As if it were a perpendicular line with his strong jaw. It was almost regal in a way.

Severus cleared his throat and she looked up at him, blushing yet again. She took her basket and scurried to the small queue that had already begun to be made. She was about third in line and 'he' was right behind her. She bit her lip nervously out of habit and gasped a little as she heard his deep voice in her ear.

"Making a Girding potion, Wiggenweld potion and... what else, Ms. Rook?" He asked smoothly, glancing at her basket of items.

The line crept forward slower than she was used to. "A personal blemish cream. I try not to be a vain creature, Professor, but this is a necessary part of my daily routine. It is probably why you did not recognize me. In school, I was known as 'Pizza Face', or 'Pimple Princess'. I refuse to be known as such in my professional career," she said shyly, a blush spreading across her cheeks. Severus just nodded and stepped back, giving her her personal space. When it was her turn to check out she put her basket on the counter and Mr. Mulpepper began tallying up the total. She cleared her throat, leaned forward, and asked quietly, "And the last item I owled you about, Mr. Mulpepper?"

"Ah, yes. It was a bit harder to acquire this as of late Natalia, so the price will have to go up."

She smiled and nodded. "I understand Sir. I appreciate your willingness to help me out. Whatever the additional price, I am sure it is fair."

The owner of the shop added the ingredient to a bag quickly, but not before the mysterious man behind Natalia noticed what it was. As she was getting the appropriate amount of galleons, knuts, and sickles to pay for her purchase, he leaned forward again.

"Ms. Rook, I was curious if I may have a word with you before you leave today?" he asked quietly. Natalia raised a brow in confusion but nodded silently. Taking her wares, she left the shop and waited outside in the still early morning sun. She liked the smell of the Apothecary, but her nerves were calling for fresh air. She waited, not so patiently, for her old potions professor to join her outside. Her nerves were getting more and more on edge the longer it took him to check out. It didn't seem that he had many things in his arms when they bumped into each other, but perhaps he too had owled in an order ahead of time. He was a potions master after all.

Finally, with a sweet tinkling of the bell, the door opened and the black-robed man left the shop. He looked around for a moment before he found Natalia who walked a little down the road before turning back. The pacing was a bad habit of hers and she did some pacing while she waited for her professor. She looked up as she saw his robes in her field of vision of the ground. She smiled shyly and said, "You wanted to speak to me, Professor?"

He nodded and, while he didn't quite smile, his scowl was less prominent. "I did. I noticed that you bought items for quite a few different potions in there, and from behind the counter, your special ingredient. That is a rare item, Boomslang skin, Ms. Rook, as I am sure you know. What are you planning on using it for if I may ask?"

Natalia was confused. Why would it matter to him why she used it? "Well professor, I was just restocking my personal stores. I had a private order of some Polyjuice Potion, and I was getting low. As a potions master, I am sure you like to keep your stores fully stocked at all times."

Natalia suddenly thought she was going crazy. She thought, for a moment, that an inkling of a smile was playing on her professor's lips. It was almost charming if she didn't think she needed to have a little stay in the Janus Thickey Ward in St. Mungo's. Besides his smile, she noticed the tired look in his eyes from earlier suddenly was gone. As if the conversation suddenly intrigued him enough to wake up.

"You are interested in potions, Ms. Rook?" He asked with a brow raised. "I don't remember the interest while you were in school." Natalia blushed again. She could feel the heat spread over her face to her ears.

"Yes, sir. While in school I was more interested in Divination and Charms, as an adult I can see the appeal of potions. I am a healer's assistant at St. Mungo's currently and I work on potions daily. I did a short apprenticeship with Madam Pomfrey and got a reference from her to get into St Mungo's actually. I was to go visit her this morning. I try to visit her on the weekends or my other days off on the hospital. I help her restock the hospital wing of the school and I still learn so much from her."

Natalia bit her lip to shut herself up. She felt that she was rambling and smiled shyly. She knew that she talked a lot when it was something that she loved. It was a weakness she had, but one that she was glad for.

"Perhaps I could meet you in Hogsmeade for a cup of tea this morning, then I could accompany you to Hogwarts for your meeting with Poppy?" He asked, if not a little awkwardly. It surprised Natalia into nodding her acquiescence. He nodded and followed up his request with "Do you know how to Apparate?"

Again, she dipped her head in affirmation and he mirrored her actions. "Very well. I shall meet you at Three Broomsticks?" He asked, shortly. She nodded and took a deep breath. In a matter of seconds, and with a loud 'pop', she was alone. Severus had already apparated away to Hogsmeade, she assumed. She sighed loudly, took a calming breath and focused on her destination. With another loud 'pop', she too disappeared.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fan fic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** Here is the next chapter. No plot changes in this one, but some changes. Added some entries here, took some away there. Adjectives were added. Simple stuff. Once we get to the meat and potatoes of the story you will notice some more changes. I hope you enjoy and keep up with support. Thank you to **Amarenima Redwood**, my first reviewer of this revamped story and one of my original followers on my last version! I am humbled by your support darling! Thank you!

Also, thank you to you all that followed and favorited the story so far! Your support encourages me to continue!

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Severus 'popped' into the decently empty street of Hogsmeade. Standing right in front of Three Broomsticks in the small village near Hogwarts, he took a deep breath before entering the establishment and eyeing Madame Rosmerta, ordered a 'bottomless' tea set and some tea biscuits. Rosmerta brought the items to a little booth in the farthest corner from the door. He sat with his back to the corner. Always the suspicious one due to being a spy in the first war, Severus never liked his back being exposed. He liked having options. He required to know who was coming at him from every angle. It made him feel safe, as much as he could considering the circumstances.

He felt his Dark Mark itch, just as it had been since the beginning of the year. Dumbledore had announced that The Triwizard Tournament was to take place on Hogwarts grounds and because of that, students from the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang schools both arrived shortly after the start of the year. Ever since then, the three champions were chosen, plus one. The great Harry Potter was also chosen as a champion. The three schools had a battle of the wills thinking that Hogwarts cheated. Dumbledore, of course, denied it. After much speculation and debate, it was decided by the Minister himself that Harry was allowed to compete. He had already defeated a Hungarian Horntail single-handedly. Someone wouldn't hear it from Severus, but he was surprised that Potter had done so well.

Severus cleared his throat and took a sip of tea. He felt the warmth of the liquid slide smoothly down his throat, warming him from the inside. The cold that had bitten deep into his bones slowly seeped away. He sighed contentedly as he waited for his former student. He certainly hadn't recognized her. Once she had described herself, he immediately had her pictured in his mind and frowned. She had been a mediocre student in potions at best, at the time, and she did have a severe acne problem. Both problems she had seemed to have rectified. At least, her acne problem was an obvious improvement. He had yet to see if her potions work had been improved.

Suddenly there was a twinkling of a small, quaint bell that made Severus look up towards the door. He saw the reddish-brown hair of his former student and he cleared his throat softly and stood. He saw her glance over in his direction and smile slightly as she walked towards him. As she neared, Severus motioned to the booth opposite him and watched her sit before he followed suit. He poured Natalia a cup of tea and offered milk and sugar. She took two cubes of sugar, no milk; he made a mental note of that. They sat in a congenial silence. He wouldn't describe it necessarily as companionable, but it was nice. After all the excitement with the Triwizard Tournament, there wasn't a moment of peace at Hogwarts. He cleared his throat and thought that would be a start to a conversation.

"So, Ms. Rook. I assume that you have heard that Hogwarts is hosting the Triwizard Tournament this year? If you have been visiting Poppy, she probably has been keeping you up to date with the latest gossip." He nearly smiled with that. She nodded nervously, caught off guard with the small talk.

"Indeed, Sir. She told me all about Harry Potter's dilemma of being the fourth champion and the last time I visited was just before the first event. She was due to tell me what happened today when I go to see her this afternoon." She smiled kindly and took her tea, mixing the sugar in well before taking a sip. He nodded thoughtfully and contemplated telling her himself, but he didn't want to seem like a gossip. He decided to go to a topic he was more comfortable with. A topic to which he called for this impromptu meeting in the first place.

"Boomslang skin. A necessary ingredient to Polyjuice Potion as we have discussed. Do you brew Polyjuice often? It is quite a strenuous task," he remarked. She blushed, yet swallowed her tea before answering. She placed her teacup on the saucer and took a calming breath.

"Normally, no. But this private order was quite generous in the funding department, as it was quite a large order. They covered all materials needed, and then some seeing as how a few brews have failed. I have gotten a few steps wrong here or there. Luckily, it was not too disastrous, although my nose was upturned for about a week. I looked like my great Aunt Tessy, the great pig."

Natalia scoffed remembering her aunt and Severus could understand that feeling of resentment and dislike. His own father was a persona non grata with him up until the day he died. Even death didn't make Severus miss his father. He wondered if he was cold-hearted for that and shrugged the thought away almost immediately, not caring in the slightest. He then turned attention back to his former student.

"Hmm. Interesting. The private client; not your nose turning upwards." He _almost_ blushed at having to clarify himself. He admonished himself. _'She's just a former student. Why are you acting so nervous? Like a hormonal fifth year?'_ He sighed quietly and seeing her cup run low on the warming tea, refilled it.

"I am glad that nothing more disastrous happened in your endeavors, Ms. Rook. Polyjuice can be quite dangerous if not brewed properly, as I am sure you well know. Perhaps the next time you brew I can be of assistance? Maybe I can give you a few tips to make it more potent and a bit safer." he suggested offhandedly.

The question caught Natalia off guard and she was sitting there just looking at Severus for a moment. When he caught her staring, she cleared her throat and nodded.

"I would be honored, sir. I am sure under your watchful eye I would learn much more than I have in the recent years since leaving Hogwarts." He dipped his head in modest affirmation before adding some sugar to her cup.

They went on this way for about an hour more, talking about potion texts and lectures that they had been to or missed. They spoke comfortably together as if their meeting had been scheduled for months and wasn't an impromptu meeting. By the end of the hour, and two more pots of tea, Severus' right leg had fallen asleep and he had just noticed it. He grimaced slightly at the discomfort and Natalia noticed.

"Professor? Are you alright?" She asked, slightly worried.

He waved her off. "I'm fine. My leg has just fallen asleep. It should be fine by the time I reach the school. Which would make this a good time to head to the castle if I ever saw one. I wouldn't mind the company for the walk there if you're amenable? I wouldn't want Poppy's rage to come down on you for being late on my account," he finished shaking his leg slightly under the table. TIngles ran up the entire length of his leg, he grimaced at the uncomfortable feeling; like t.v static. He then stood up and offered his former student to go ahead of him when she smiled her acquiescence. She took the hint, placed a few coins down as a tip for Madam Rosmerta before her professor did, (much to his annoyance), and replacing her traveling cloak over her shoulders, briskly walked out the front door.

They walked in silence for the majority of the stroll. They were both taking in the beauty of the landscape around them. As winter was already upon them, albeit early on, the swift-falling of the icy flakes floated around them. The ground was a little muddy from the snow melting on the still too warm ground and being disturbed by passers-by, but in a few days of this weather and it would soon be covered as far as the eye could see with the fluffy, white precipitation.

The frigid wind was biting at them though, and Severus saw Natalia pull her traveling cloak closer to her body. He almost offered her his cloak but thought better of it. Instead, he placed a wordless warming charm around them. She immediately felt the difference and looked gratefully over at her former professor. She observed him carefully. His longish, not at all greasy black hair was hanging around his face, keeping his ears warm. His nose protruded gracefully from his face, almost regally. It was followed by the observation of a strong jaw. Then following an elegant neck, she noticed broad shoulders; even under his teaching robes and traveling cloak. She wondered why she hadn't noticed his stature before.

She concluded that it was most likely because as a student he was the most intimidating professor she had ever known. His reputation preceded him even before her first potions class in First year. Known as the Slytherin Bat of the Dungeons, she was almost glad she hadn't noticed his features more. She would have been exponentially more intimidated than before if she had even the slightest crush on her professor. She shrugged the thought from her mind and continued the walk in companionable silence. Unbeknownst to her, Severus was observing her as well.

Her shiny auburn hair was being blown behind her by the wind, and while it wasn't cold thanks to his warming charm, it got tangled quickly. It almost reminded him of a certain woman from his past, but the brown in the shade made her explicitly her own person in his mind. She had an attractive face. Much more attractive now than when she was in school.

'_Obviously,'_ he thought to himself. He had never seen a student in any way besides the traditional teacher-student relationship. He grimaced at the memory of the few embarrassed professors who took that relationship too far and were shamed for it. Severus never even had any interest in the prepubescent teenagers that were under his care. Drawing his attention back to the girl- no, woman, before him, he continued with his observations.

The more he talked to her, the more he could see her school profile and he had to admit, her blemish cream would compete with the most popular on any French shelf. It was a drastic difference. Thinking back, however, if he had thought hard enough to remove the blemishes of her adolescence, she would have been a very popular girl. But she was a Hufflepuff. Since she wasn't in his house, why would he give her a second glance? And so, he simply hadn't.

Now though, he observed that she had deep, glowing brown eyes that had honey and gold flecks surrounding her irises. He noticed them in the tea shop. They were so lively when she talked to him about recent journals that were published on certain experimental potions or some other tidbit of information she thought was interesting. Her hunger for knowledge was refreshing. Compared to all the dunderheads he was teaching now, he thought that he would enjoy assisting in her potion making. Hence the reason he offered to help her improve the Polyjuice Potion she had worked on previously. While she didn't have a thirst for potion knowledge in school, her hunger for it now was intriguing to Severus.

He refused to let himself observe any farther on his former student. He had a code and that was to never involve himself with a student. Not that he was thinking of doing so, but he didn't want to find any complications. As of that moment, he enjoyed her company and that was enough for him.

They soon reached the castle gates and he motioned for her to go ahead of him. They entered the Entrance Hall in silence and both took off their traveling cloaks once they were safely inside the warm castle. Severus canceled the warming charm and led the way to the Hospital Wing. Although he was sure that Natalia knew the way, he was almost impatient to see the work that she did with Poppy.

The door to the Hospital Wing groaned unceremoniously as they entered, alerting Poppy of their presence. She turned from making a recently vacant bed and smiled.

"Oh Natalia, my girl! How are you? And Severus! What a surprise! I am not used to seeing you up here without a Slytherin in tow. Is everything quite alright?" she asked, with a hint of worry.

Severus almost rolled his eyes at the concern. Even after all the years in the First Wizarding War when he would be carried unconsciously by Hagrid to the Hospital Wing to be cared for, he still wasn't used to the concern that Poppy felt for him. There were days, of course, when he welcomed it; days where she would run her cool fingers across his forehead to see if the Cruciatus fever had gone down. He would revel in that care, never being a recipient of such innocent touches as a child. However, when he was healthy and able to take care of himself, he was almost stubbornly annoyed by the concern. While it was comforting to know someone cared for his well-being, he felt almost like less of a man for being taken care of so much.

"I am fine Poppy. I was just escorting Ms. Rook to you. I ran into her today at the apothecary on Diagon Alley and she told me how she was going to visit you," he explained shortly. Natalia looked at him then at Madam Pomfrey and nodded. "She told me how she helps you restock the wings potions. I am hurt, Poppy. I thought that was my job. What am I to do now to distract me from giving out detentions to the dunderheaded Gryffindors?"

Poppy smiled and laughing gently, slapped his arm playfully. A friendly gesture. "Oh Severus, I still need you. Don't you worry. There are potions that I need that Ms. Rook is not quite ready for. But perhaps she could be if you taught her?" she asked with a not so innocent smile playing on her lips. Severus frowned at the mediwitch but then looked over to Natalia who looked almost ready to pounce at the chance.

"If it pleases Ms. Rook, I wouldn't mind tutoring her on some more advanced potions. Given the fact that she has the time. Being an intern at St. Mungo's, and then being under your tutelage Poppy, must keep the girl busy," he explained, almost talking her out of accepting.

"I can look at my schedule and work around it, Sir. Then whatever days you are free we can work around that. I wouldn't want to presume taking up all of your free time."

"Yes. That wouldn't be suitable at all. Go over your work schedule and owl me your availability. We can make a schedule from that. If it pleases you, Ms. Rook," Severus drawled. He saw Natalia nod excitedly and then turned back to Poppy. "I will let you go about your business then. Good day, Poppy. Ms. Rook." He nodded to each woman in turn and went to leave, only to see the headmaster walk briskly into the mediwitch's domain.

"Oh, Headmaster! So many visitors today! To what do I owe this pleasure?" Poppy asked. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled merrily, seeing the trio together, and smiled.

"Poppy, Severus, my boy. Ah! And Ms. Rook. What are we all doing up here today? I was only expecting the lovely witches today," Dumbledore said with a happy smile on his face. He almost looked genuinely happy to see them all together but Severus knew better. The old man was up to something.

"I was just leaving Albus. Poppy had some business with Ms. Rook and I didn't want to _interfere_." He emphasized that last word, drawing it out in his best imitation of Dungeon Bat-voice, knowing that interfering was what the old man did best. Dumbledore just laughed giddily and put his arm around Severus' shoulders, bringing him back into the group.

"Nonsense, Severus. You must stay! I was just going to tell Ms. Rook about the Yule Ball. Having an extra mediwitch, even one in training, would be so very helpful. Students seem to always be able to get extra treats and drinks in when there is a ball, and many get reckless. With the two other schools here as well, it would behoove me to get a few extra hands on deck, as they say. What do you say, Ms. Rook? Will you assist an old man for his peace of mind?" The old headmaster's sky blue eyes were twinkling double fold waiting for her answer. He didn't have to wait long. Natalia was excited to help.

"Of course, Headmaster! I would be honored. This could be a good experience to add to my work history. Every bit counts. Thank you, sir!" she exclaimed excitedly. Dumbledore nodded to her and clapped Severus on the shoulder.

"Very good. Also, Ms. Rook. If you have a moment before you leave today, I would like to have a word with you. It is of the utmost importance," he said seriously. His smile was gone, but the twinkling in his eyes remained. She nodded in response and Dumbledore left with a nod at Poppy and another shoulder clap to Severus.

Severus looked suspiciously at his old friend and sighed quietly. _'What was that man up to?'_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fan fic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** Here is Chapter 3. I'm gonna have to slow down here in the posting aspect of this story. I have 20 chapters written but I haven't fixed them all yet and I don't want to get too far ahead of myself. Thank you for the continued support and reviews. I would love to reply to all of them. That is a definite goal this time around.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Natalia worked with Madam Pomfrey for a couple of hours after the group went their separate ways. Making beds, emptying buckets filled with vomit, and finally, brewing a few blood replenishing potions. Natalia knew that being a healer was sometimes dirty work and the more that she interned at St. Mungo's, the more she realized that; yes, she liked helping people; she just didn't feel being a healer was right for her. She loved to learn. She loved to brew potions. She loved working on charms and spells. Sometimes all the things worked hand in hand and she loved experimenting. What Natalia truly wished to do was be a potions mistress. She sighed wistfully, thinking about her dream, and how it was unlikely to ever come to fruition.

"What is it dear girl, that makes you huff so dejectedly? Out with it! You know you can speak to little ol' me," Poppy said good-heartedly. Natalia smiled joylessly. Poppy was a kind and admirable woman, and since Natalia's mother died, the older woman almost seamlessly slipped into Natalia's life to fill in that particular ache in Natalia's heart. Poppy never tried to replace Natalia's mother. It would be an impossible task to fill the shoes her mother left behind. However, just knowing that the elderly woman was willing to be there to comfort her in times of sadness, or straighten her out in times of melancholy, was comforting to Natalia and she was thankful for Poppy.

She smiled timidly, caught in her self-pity and knowing it. "I don't know Poppy. I just feel stuck in a rut. I love healing people, but it's just...humdrum. It's not making me happy. I feel...complacent. I don't want to glide through life content. I want…" she hesitated for a moment, thinking of what she really wanted. "I want to achieve something. I want to do something worthwhile. Perhaps write articles that get published on some new potion that cures effects of the cruciatus curse or something of that sort… But I don't have the training or the money to be a great potioneer," she explained demurely.

Poppy thought deeply for a minute in silence and nodded. She left the brewing room without a word, presumably going to her private office, and came back a minute later with a little scroll tied with a silky red ribbon. Handing it to her charge she said, "Here is what I want you to do. I will finish this batch of blood replenishing potions. I want you to go see the headmaster for whatever business he needs you for. Afterward, if you have time, go to Professor Snape and give him this message. If he responds, bring it to me and then we can talk more about your future. I want what is best for you, my dear. I hope you always know that," Poppy said as she put a kind hand on Natalia's shoulder. The younger girl nodded gratefully and went on her way.

On her way to the Headmaster's office, she bumped into some students. She apologized quickly and continued on her path. As she went, she heard the students continue with their conversation as she left.

"Come on, Harry! We will both have dates to the ball by the time we return to the Common Room after dinner. Agreed?" She heard the question from a certain red-head, but not the response as she went further down the hall. Just as she arrived at the Headmaster's office entrance, she realized belatedly that she didn't have the password. The grumpy stone gargoyle was guarding the stairs with extra vigilance it seemed; Its scowl never left its face as she begged it entrance. She wondered how she would be allowed to enter when suddenly the gargoyle jumped to the side and a set of spiral stairs appeared and the periwinkle robes of the Headmaster shimmered in front of her.

"Ah, my dear. Perfect timing! I was just about to fetch myself a bit to eat, but now that you are here I will just have one of our house elves to forage something for the both of us in my office. Shall we?" he asked, motioning back up the stairs behind him. He stepped to the side, allowing her to go ahead of him. She smiled and went up the stairs briskly, slightly nervous at what the Headmaster had to say to her.

When they got into his office, she looked around. She had never been here, even as a student. She was a decent student; not one to get in trouble, but she also wasn't an extraordinary student either. Just staying in the shadows and minding her own business; Average. There was no need to draw the attention of the Headmaster. She looked curiously at the past headmasters and mistresses portraits. They were either sleeping or were absent from their portraits, spending time in some matching portrait miles away. Magic was interesting that way.

"Lemon drop?" Dumbledore offered. She nodded and smiled. She adored lemon drops. They were always her favorite candy as a child. While she didn't partake nearly as much as she used to, a sweet treat was nice now and again. She took one and popped it silently into her mouth. Sucking on the tart candy, she puckered her lips for a moment as the sour sensation melted over her tongue, then sighed contentedly as the sweet taste replaced the sour. She looked at the headmaster expectantly. His eyes twinkling he went straight to the matter he called her for.

"What do you know of Lord Voldemort, Natalia?" he asked carefully.

She was surprised and almost swallowed the candy whole. She choked for a moment before she caught her bearings. "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, Sir?" she asked warily.

"Ah. Do not fear his name, my girl. It only brings fear of the thing itself, and he is gone. No need for fear now, surely. But yes, what do you know of him?"

Natalia thought carefully, curious as to why he was asking her. "Well, sir. He is a great Dark wizard. Defeated by Harry Potter when he was just over a year old due to an unforgivable curse rebounding and killing Him. He has been gone for about twelve years now, I think. Before He tried to kill Harry, He killed Harry's parents, who sacrificed themselves in order to try to save their son, or so the legends say. History tells the rest."

Dumbledore just nodded. After a moment of silence, he asked, "And what about the First Wizarding War? What do you know of it?"

"Well, just what I have read in the Daily Prophet and in some other articles. I was so young at the time. It had been brewing for many years, but really started coming to a head in 1970. He proclaimed himself a Dark Lord and had gathered followers, Death Eaters, whom He branded with Dark Marks, and they wreaked havoc on Wizarding Britain, all to fight for blood superiority. Many people; half-bloods, pure bloods, and muggle-borns alike died. It was awful," Natalia summarized, starting to feel queasy and still not understanding the reasoning for these questions. So she decided to ask. "_Why_ are you asking, sir? Surely you know more than I. It is said that the only thing _**He**_ feared, was you."

Dumbledore's eyes lit up again with mirth and he nodded. "Yes. That is said, but there is something else that Voldemort is afraid of. However, we will get to that another time. Have you heard of the Order of the Phoenix, my dear girl?" Natalia shook her head. The headmaster continued. "The Order of the Phoenix was a group that I assembled during the First Wizarding War to fight against Voldemort and his supporters. The Order tried to defeat him and save the Potters, unfortunately unsuccessfully. Many of the Purebloods, Half-bloods and even a muggle-born or two that were killed were part of the Order. It is this Order that I have a feeling we will need to reestablish in the very near future"

"Why do you say that, Sir? Surely, V-Voldemort is dead. He has been gone for over a decade. His body would be rotted, even if magic had tried to keep him in stasis. Spells like that would only last so long," she said curiously.

He smiled and nodded. "You are quite right, my dear girl. However, whenever I have an inkling of a feeling, I am wont to follow it and I am, most of the time, correct. I was wondering if you may be interested in joining this Order. We will be in need of a healer, even one with a beginners training such as yourself."

Natalia frowned. She had just told Poppy that Healing wasn't making her happy. At least not while apprenticing at St. Mungo's. She thought for a minute and sighed. "I am not sure, Sir. I would love to help you and to keep your peace of mind that He is gone. However, healing just doesn't make me happy. I feel like I have other talents that may be of more use… I just have to figure them out myself still," she explained. He smiled and nodded.

"I am confident that you have many talents for us, my dear. I am sure that I will ask them of you later. However, you are a talented Healer already and I believe that out of the chaotic atmosphere of St. Mungo's, you would flourish. Just think about it, would you? That is all I ask. I am aware that you visit Poppy quite often. Once you think more deeply on the subject, come meet with me again and we can talk about your future."

Natalia nodded, unsure. "Of course sir. And are you certain that you will still be needing me for the Yule Ball? I would still like to help where I can with that."

Dumbledore smiled and nodded. "Of course. We would be glad to have you, even if only as a guest. I would hate to just use you for your services. I would hope that you would be able to have a dance or two before the students get too drunk and in need of some sober-up potions." His eyes gleamed with mischief and he gave her a grandfatherly smile. "Well, my dear. That is all I wanted to discuss with you. Would you like something to eat? I did offer some refreshments, but it seems we got right down to business. "

She shook her head. "No, sir. Thank you though. I have one last bit of business to take care of before I return home."

He nodded, almost expecting that answer. "Well, I hope that you have a wonderful rest of your day, my dear. Give Severus my regards."

She gasped, surprised. He just smiled again, his eyes twinkling and she left, fingering the little scroll in her pocket. She would learn soon enough that almost nothing was a secret from Dumbledore. Not when it concerned his potions master at least….

Natalia scurried down to the Dungeons at a brisk pace. She always was confident in how fit she was. She exercised regularly and the heavy lifting of some patients in St. Mungo's had given her a lean and toned body that she was proud of. Yet, even with all that work, she was still slightly winded by the time she got to the dungeons. That's what she got for skipping her cardio exercises.

The door to the Potions classroom was open and there wasn't a class in session yet. She thought back and noticed that there weren't many students in the halls on her way down there either. She concluded that this may well be Severus' free period.

She knocked soundly on the door and he looked up from his work. He seemed to be grading essays. "What is it, Ms. Rook? I am a little busy."

Natalia blushed and walked inside closer to him. "I'm sorry, Sir. Madam Pomfrey sent me down here with a note for you; said to wait and see if you would reply. I'm sorry for disturbing your free period."

Severus sighed and put his hand out. Natalia immediately reached in her robe's pocket and pulled out the parchment wrapped in ribbon. He tore the ribbon off unceremoniously, looking almost annoyed that Poppy had even added that bit of frivolity. His dark brown, almost ebony black eyes skimmed over the text and then glanced up at her before returning back to the note. Natalia bit her lip nervously and started twisting little bits of her hair. It was a nervous tick that she had done since she was a child. The serious professor spoke, breaking her out of her own thoughts.

"According to Poppy, you are unhappy with your current occupational endeavors Ms. Rook. Is that correct?"

Natalia cleared her suddenly dry throat and dipped her head in affirmation. "Yes, sir. While I enjoy helping people, I would prefer to do so with more focus on Potion making. Since leaving Hogwarts, as I told you this morning, my interest in Potions has become significantly greater. I was under the impression that Healers at St. Mungo's did a lot of Potion work. However, they just administer the potions. They have potion makers on hand to make the actual potions," she explained unnecessarily.

"I am quite aware of how St. Mungo's works, Ms. Rook. I brew for them on the occasion per a contract," he started "So are you wanting to be an apprentice to a potions master? Or will you just work in an apothecary, being too overqualified for the job? I am sure Mr. Mulpepper would enjoy your company…" He trailed off, a slight sneer on his lips. She trembled, reminded at just how intimidating he could be as a professor. Especially when she was feeling admonished by him in his classroom. She gulped, trying to get her stomach out of her throat.

"Well, sir. I hadn't thought about it much. I was just talking Poppy's ear off and I mentioned my stagnancy at St. Mungo's. She sent me away shortly after with that note. I don't even know what it says."

"It says, Ms. Rook, that Madam Pomfrey is asking for a formal request for an apprenticeship with a potions master, one Severus Snape." He snarled out his own name. "She is willing to pay for said apprenticeship. A supposed _gift_ for a friend. She insists that you would be the model student and not _likely_ to waste my time. What do you think of that assessment, Ms. Rook?" he asked in a drawl. His eyes narrowed, looking to her.

She gulped, her stomach jumping into her throat again. "Uh- I-I am surprised she did that Professor. I didn't ask her to do that if that is what you are thinking. I just-"

"Do not presume as to know what I am thinking, Ms. Rook. That is a huge annoyance to me," he said. Then he fell silent as if for her to continue. She nodded.

"I would be honored to be your apprentice, sir. I am a quick study, and I don't think I would be wasting your time. I know that you are a professor here and taking on an apprentice would most likely take up every last bit of your spare time and I wouldn't presume to ask that of you," she finished.

He glared at her, his eyes piercing. "Madam Pomfrey didn't seem to have a problem presuming to ask that of me," he spat.

Getting frustrated she replied, "I am not Poppy, sir. Her thoughts, while appreciated, are her own." She looked back at him unwavering. While he was intimidating, she refused to back down. Her integrity was being examined, she felt, and she wouldn't cower now. If she did, what would that say about her?

Severus thought deeply for a few moments. The silence was choking but finally, he nodded. "Very well. We will begin the Saturday after the Yule Ball. I will expect you to give your notice to St. Mungo's. I will need all of your spare time Ms. Rook. Evenings during the week. All day during the weekends. Working around my schedule during school breaks. Is that understood?"

Natalia was flabbergasted. Her mouth was hanging open. She was surprised that he had actually accepted the apprenticeship. He was one of the last Potions masters alive in England that were willing to do so. "Uh, thank you, sir. I will not let you down?"

He almost smirked. "Was that a question Ms. Rook?"

She shook her head, flustered. "I will _**not**_ let you down sir. Will I see you at the ball?"

He looked up at her questioningly. "Perhaps. I am supposed to chaperone. We will see. Good day, Ms. Rook."

Natalia recognized a dismissal when she heard one and took it at face value. She heard shuffling in the halls and assumed that class was soon to start. She left the potions classroom, only looking back once to see the potions master looking after her. She quickly turned away to return to Poppy, (who was ecstatic to hear the news Natalia brought) and left Hogwarts.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** And we're rolling right along with Chapter 4! I truly hope you enjoy this chapter. Again there will be plenty of edits from the original so take care to read through it again. I have 23 Chapters written and that just goes through part of 5th year. There is much more to go. As of right now, I plan to for sure upload a chapter once every 2 weeks until I run out of pre-written chapters. As I edit chapters, I plan to continue writing new ones, but once we catch up it may be slower uploads. I will work tirelessly to keep it updated. I slacked entirely too much on my last version with months between chapter uploads and I refuse to let that happen again. So, without further ado, here is the next chapter!

Chapter 4

As soon as Natalia left, Severus sighed and leaned back in his chair. That infernal woman. Poppy was always interfering with his life and he was frustrated. Why couldn't he just be left alone? He itched his dark mark and growled at it. It had been just over twelve years since the last time it burned. He would have been concerned if he heard more whispers, but there weren't any. Not any to be concerned about at least. Not yet…

Severus growled again and set back to grading essays from the fourth years that were in earlier that morning. He had just finished with the most knowledgeable student's essay when his fifth years started filing into the classroom. He waved his wand, filing the essays away for another time, and brought the chalk on the blackboard to write on its own accord as he began teaching simultaneously. The lesson went on without a hitch thankfully and afterward was lunch. Instead of going to the Great Hall he kept to his private rooms and wrote a note for Poppy, then ordered his lunch. He had the house elf that delivered his food send the note to Poppy since he had work to do. He graded schoolwork as he ate, careful not to get food on the papers, but marking a majority with his red script, his mood brightened just a bit.

/

Natalia apparated home after her meeting with Poppy, the Headmaster, and finally, Severus. She walked through the wards of her quaint, slightly rundown cottage and took off her traveling cloak, hanging it on the coat rack near the door. She heard the soft cry of her tabby familiar.

"Oh, Freya. I forgot about you! I'm sorry. You're probably terribly hungry. I got caught up in some business," Natalia explained to the cat. The feline just meowed; as if annoyed, and twirled between her owner's legs. She looked up at Natalia and exclaimed again, signaling her indignation and hunger. Natalia immediately went into her kitchen and got out some food and water for her familiar. She sat at her dark oak wooden table and watched the animal eat its fill.

She ran her hands through her auburn hair and sighed. So much had happened that day; so much that she had not even expected. She went to gossip with Poppy and came home with an apprenticeship with a Potions Master. She was suddenly nervous. She summoned parchment and a quill and set water for tea on the stove to heat up. As she waited for the water, she penned her resignation letter and gave her notice. In two weeks time, she would be an apprentice to one of the most well know potions masters of this time. She bit her lip and smiled. She could finally pursue her passion. St. Mungo's would understand. She hoped anyway.

The whistle of the tea kettle brought her out of her fantastical reverie and she went to make herself a cup. She took her two cubes of sugar and mixed it into the tea, then wrapping her fingers around the warm cup she took a sip, savoring the warming effect it had on her. The hot liquid settled in her gullet warming her whole body, taking the winter chill away. She sighed and nodded. These next few weeks would be interesting indeed.

/

Two weeks later; the last day that Natalia was to intern at St. Mungo's she was quite nervous. That day she only had a few mundane tasks to finish before her lunch then she would be free to go. She cleaned bedpans and made up some living quarters for longer staying patients, and she was finished. She sighed and went off to lunch. When she entered the lunchroom, many yells of "_**Surprise**_!" surrounded her. She was surprised all right. She wasn't aware that her fellow interns had noticed her, let alone would care enough to make a farewell party for her. She was touched, to be sure. She ate and drank with them and they gave her well wishes and congratulated her on her apprenticeship. She smiled and told them how nervous she was.

"No need to be nervous Natalia, if you had stayed on, I heard that you would have been hired full on in the next couple months! But this is a huge opportunity for you! St. Mungo's will definitely miss you," said a girl her age whose name she guiltily couldn't remember. Natalia smiled politely and nodded. Then, taking the cards and well wishes with her, she left St. Mungo's, went home and got ready to start her new adventure.

She was suddenly nervous, yet again. The Yule Ball was tonight and then, a day later was her first day being Severus' apprentice. She bit her lip in worry. How could she handle that pressure? Being around her former professor, trying to do what he does on a daily basis? She groaned aloud. Her feline familiar looked up at her and almost rolled its eyes as if to say, 'Calm down. No need to fret,' before returning to its lunch. Natalia took a deep breath to try to calm down. _This could work. I just have to try my hardest and not muck up too horribly._ She could do that… Right?

She sighed again and ran her hand through her hair as she sat down in a dining room chair. She had plenty of time to get ready for the ball, and she really needed to calm down. She brewed a ritualistic cup of tea and drank it slowly, pondering what exactly her duties would be for tonight. She didn't think that the students would be too unruly at the ball, but there were two additional schools attending. Also, from the gossip that she heard from Poppy, a popular band was to play at the ball, which could always make kids overly excited.

After her tea and a bit of reflection, Natalia went up to her room. She closed the white painted door and looked around. The light blue paint on the walls was peeling slightly at the corners, the white paint on the window sills was chipped. She sighed, wanting more in a home, but shrugged thinking this was the best she could do with what she had. She went to her wardrobe and opened the creaky cherry oak doors to reveal her clothing. She tried to decide what to wear, but besides some very casual jeans and a few t-shirts, all she had were her St. Mungo's robes and her spare traveling cloak. She sighed again and decided to transfigure a nightgown into a nice ball gown.

She changed the lace from the neckline of the nightgown onto the dress into tulle and transferred it to the skirt portion of the now floor-length gown. After a few more moments of wandwork, the end result was satisfying for Natalia. It was an A-line halter floor length dress. The bodice was satin and light yellow in color. She thought it was appropriate to bring in her former house colors. There were jewels on the bodice, soft yellow topaz beaded throughout and up the neckline meeting the halter straps. As she looked herself over with the dress on she smiled, content in her alteration. She looked quite nice if she thought so herself. Her auburn hair was a nice punch of color to offset the subtle yellows of her dress. She put on some nice makeup, made her eyes a little smoky, put on some mascara and eyeliner and was happy with the outcome. Natalia was never one for a lot of makeup, but this was a special occasion and she wanted to look nice.

Freya nuzzled into the room, pushing the door open with her head and meowed contentedly looking up at Natalia. It was almost as if she approved of the young woman's choice in fashion. Natalia smiled and quickly tied her hair up into a simple french braid, curving around her head. With one last look into the mirror, she declared herself presentable enough to go to the ball. She felt a little fidgety. She hadn't been to a ball since she left Hogwarts. Who would she dance with? She didn't really have any friends at the school besides Poppy. She just shrugged, put on her traveling cloak, and then, after warding her home, she spun around and apparated right outside of the school grounds.

/

Severus growled at his reflection. He was not in the mood to deal with drunken dunderheads. He could hardly stand when they were sober. Dumbledore all but insisted that the professors needed to be lenient tonight on some rules in order to make sure the students had the best time imaginable.

"This only happens once in a lifetime, Minerva. Let the youngsters have some fun. If they get in too much trouble, then you can deduct as many house points as you want. However, a little drinking and frivolity shouldn't be a sin at such a wondrous event. Don't you agree?" the old man asked. Severus just scowled at him. Not only was the old man asking them to shirk on their duties, but he wasn't even going to be attending all night. He would make a short appearance at the beginning, then he '_had some business to take care of_'. Whatever the hell that meant.

Severus growled again and turned around, his dress robes swinging behind him. He just wished that the night went on without a hitch and would end as soon as possible. He honestly liked events such as these, when he was actually allowed to enjoy them and not just be a chaperone. However, he had no date tonight; and as such was roped into the chaperone position. He sighed dejectedly and tied his hair back with a simple black leather strap. His dress robes were a slate gray instead of his traditional, plain black professor's robes. There was a line of buttons running along the middle, keeping the robes together.

He cast a silent '_tempus_' charm and it showed him that he had about fifteen minutes before the ball started. He soundlessly left his quarters and ascended from the dungeons to the Great Hall. He went to the doors of the Great Hall and found that they were closed to the students until the time the ball started officially. There were many students already there, anxious to start dancing. There would, of course, be a feast first, so Severus at least had a short reprieve before the 'drinking and frivolity' started.

Once the feast finished, the food was removed from the tables, and drinks appeared on a long, side table to the far left of the room. There were also a few snacks under stasis charms for the students and faculty to nibble on throughout the night, but otherwise, the few remaining tables were for students to rest their tired feet.

Severus noticed his to-be apprentice arrive just after the feast. He was surprised when he saw her. Her delicate yellow dress was striking and very flattering to her appearance. He cleared his throat and looked away from her just as his Gryffindor equal sidled up to him.

"Oh, she looks lovely. So grown up from the time she was here as a student. Ms. Rook certainly has turned into a lovely young lady. I hear she is to be your apprentice, Severus? How ever will you find the time?" the Scottish elder asked.

Severus shrugged. "We had planned that she come to study under me on the weekends, evenings after classes during the week, and during school breaks. It may lengthen the apprenticeship, but she assured me that I would not be wasting my time. She seems more competent now than when she was a student. I hope I am not disappointed," he said simply.

"Oh, Severus. Don't be too hard on her. You always were so intimidating as a teacher. Maybe if you enjoy this, she could learn even more," McGonagall said knowingly. Her eyes twinkled, almost like the headmaster. It was disconcerting, to say the least, and he scowled.

"Oh, come off it, Minerva. This is a Potions Apprenticeship. She wants to be a potions mistress. If I am too easy on her we will have an inadequate legacy and I refuse to allow that to happen. If she is unable to deal with my '_intimidation_', as you so put it, then she is unworthy of my time. However, Poppy assures me she shall not be. We will see. She starts tomorrow he finished.

At that moment, Dumbledore came up to the front of the Great Hall where all of the professors usually ate together, and where his great podium normally stood. He stood in the middle of the platform and put a slight sonorus charm on his voice.

"Welcome! And thank you for coming to the Yule Ball! We would like to especially welcome again the great schools of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons and we hope you all have a wondrous time here! Now a few simple rules. Underage drinking is prohibited tonight just as any other on school grounds. Those of you of age, please be responsible. We would hate to take away house points on such a magnificent night. Second, this is a chaperoned event. If you wish to get some air, the gardens to my left are open and available to you with a warming charm all around the area to stave off the winter chill. If any student is ready to retire for the evening, a teacher will escort you to your common room. This is for your safety, security, and well-being."

He looked seriously at the large group of students in fourth year and above, making his point well. Then he clapped his hands together delightedly and continued in a happier tone.

"Now, with the boring formalities taken care of, please enjoy _The Weird Sisters_ performance tonight!" he exclaimed. With a wave of his wand, the candles floating in the sky dimmed and from the back of the room, a band appeared dramatically in a cloud of smoke and started playing.

Students immediately began screaming and hollering in excitement. They did two upbeat songs while Severus' eyes prowled to make sure no student spiked the punch bowl. Dumbledore asking him to shirk the rules or not, it was too early for that tomfoolery and Severus would put an end to it, even if he didn't get to take away house points. Unfortunately for him, it hadn't happened by the time the band started a slower song. He saw the headmaster walk over to Natalia and offer her his arm, which she gladly took with a dazzling smile.

The pair started dancing, and surprisingly gracefully for the old man. Natalia kept up quite well for the waltz that began. After the Headmaster took his dancing partner, the champions all came to the floor one by one and danced with their dates as well. Viktor Krum was dancing with Hermione Granger surprisingly, Harry Potter was with one of the Patil twins, Cedric Diggory with Cho Chang, and Fleur Delacour with Roger Davies, the Captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch Team.

Everyone clapped as they watched the champions and headmaster dance. They slowly joined, one by one to join the waltz. Dumbledore gracefully swung Natalia around for the dance and she was smiling radiantly. It was hard to look away from a smile like that, and Severus was finding that fact right at the moment that Dumbledore swung her around one last time and stopped in front of him.

"Severus my boy! Would you mind taking over for an old man? Ms. Rook here has too much stamina for me and I need to rest a moment. Here you are," he said handing Natalia's hand over to Severus, not waiting for an answer. It took him a moment to shake himself out of his reverie, but emptied his mind, nodded and gently took her hand in his.

She was blushing and looking down as he lightly pulled her back onto the dance floor. They quickly got in step with the others and joined the dance formation. Silently stepping to the beat, Severus was mindful not to look into her clear brown eyes, but he was having a hard time. Upon closer inspection, he could see little specks of gold swirling in those shining eyes and he almost smiled. The gold almost matched the gems on her dress.

"You look quite lovely, Ms. Rook," Severus complimented. She blushed again.

"Thank you, sir. As do you. Look dashing, I mean," she corrected in haste. Her blush deepened at her slip of the tongue and he again very nearly smiled. She danced well, so he didn't have to focus too hard on that. He found that he actually enjoyed dancing with his former student, and to-be apprentice. With that thought, he sighed and remembered that _**that**_ is what she was to him. His apprentice. It would be inappropriate for him to think of her any other way. He strengthened his reserve and got a bit more tense for it. She looked confused as if she noticed and bit her lip nervously.

_'She shouldn't draw that much attention to her lips. They are utterly distracting,'_ he thought to himself. He then chastised himself for the thought. What had he just steeled himself against? _**Her.**_ And yet he immediately had that thought. He would have to be careful around this girl, he decided. And she really needed to be careful around him.

Suddenly the music changed to a more upbeat song. Severus, ever the gentleman, bowed to Natalia and went to man his post as a chaperone. He was in the corner nearest where the staff tables used to be. Natalia took the hint and went to where she was assigned as well. It was near the balcony on the far right side of the Great hall. The doors were open, but the chill of the air didn't get past the warming charm around the area. The light of the night, the moon, and stars, however, were shining all around her, making her look radiant. Severus had a hard time looking away. Such a hard time in fact, that he missed some fifth years spiking the punch.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

**AN:** Welcome to another installment of The Queen of Hearts! I am so happy that you are all still following and reviewing. It brings me a lot of encouragement to continue on. Here's a second chapter for you guys today cause I'm kicking ass on editing the chapters I already have. So here's a treat for you. Here's a short AN, so let's carry on.

Chapter 5

Natalia stood at her post stoically all throughout the evening as the festivities went on. The only time she left was to get a drink of punch or to escort a student to their common room. She was starting to get tired and woozy after just a few hours, but she tried to fight through the drowsiness as much as she could. She thought perhaps it just from not eating dinner earlier. As the time got later more students needed to be escorted to their common rooms, so two chaperones were required to go with the larger groups so they did not lose anyone along the way. One would be at the front of the group and the other at the back.

On one such occasion, Natalia was grouped with Severus to take a group of Slytherins. The short trip to the dungeons was uneventful, but Natalia felt dizzier with each step. She blinked her eyes and tried shaking her head to clear her mind, but it only made it worse. Seeing stars behind her eyelids, Natalia grunted in the effort to feel better. Severus looked at her curiously, but she hadn't noticed as she breathed deeply. She was suddenly nauseous and covered her mouth. Just as the last student was through the entrance in the dungeon wall, she turned on her heel and ran to the nearest niche to hide in, heaving the contents of her stomach at the feet of the suit of armor that stood there.

Enchanted as it was, it seemingly grimaced as it lifted its left boot to get it as far away from the putrid vomit as possible. Natalia groaned and with a quick wave of her wand, wordlessly vanished the mess. She turned slightly, leaning against the wall and slid down the length of it, sitting on the cold marble floor. She put her head on her arms that were crossed on top of her knees. After a moment, someone cleared their throat and Natalia stopped breathing. She peeked up over her arms at the noise and groaned.

Severus frowned. "Does my presence displease you, Ms. Rook?" he asked. He took a few steps closer to her, checked around the armor and seeing that it was sufficiently clean, albeit annoyed at being puked on, he looked back at Natalia.

"I am mortified that you saw that, Professor. How embarrassing," she groaned out. Her throat felt hot from the bile. She grimaced as it seemed that she would get sick again, but with a deep breath, she calmed down.

"How much have you had to drink, Ms. Rook? Need I remind you that you were here as a chaperone?" he asked, a disappointed tone in his voice.

"No! I haven't drunk anything besides some punch throughout the night. But it tasted fine; just like a normal punch." She tried to think if there were any weird tastes as she was drinking the refreshment, but she couldn't remember clearly. She was adamant that if she had noticed any alcohol, she would have reported it. She frowned, placing her forehead against her arm again. "Oh, Merlin. I am going to get fired before I even begin."

Severus rolled his eyes. He did a silent summoning spell and a few vials of assorted potions zoomed directly into his hands. He stiffly handed them to Natalia. "Here. Take these. Hangover potion for tomorrow and a pepperup potion if it is needed as well. Meanwhile, why don't you let me help you up? The headmaster will want to know about this. You couldn't have possibly gotten sick like this from a regular punch and if you couldn't taste any alcohol, then it very likely could have been something else."

Severus reached down offering his hand for her to take. She did so shakily, so he gently grabbed her elbow as leverage to help her up. She stood for a moment before stumbling again. Severus rolled his eyes and went to swipe her legs up into his arms as he carried her upper body in his other arm. She groaned at the sudden movement, but otherwise didn't protest and laid her head on his shoulder.

Severus could smell the shampoo the girl used. It was a mixture of lilac and something citrusy. Oranges, that was it. It was an interesting smell, but something that was fitting for her. He almost smiled until he realized that he was already at the Headmaster's office.

"Bogey flavored beans," he said clearly to the gargoyle that stood sentry. It just silently nodded, stepping aside as the spiral staircase descended for Severus to step onto. He went up the stairs, careful as to not hit Natalia against any of the walls as they turned in the staircase. Once he was finally at the top, he kick 'knocked' the door and waited until it opened a moment later. Dumbledore was standing at the door, his robes looking disheveled and his face flushed. Severus quirked his eyebrow at the headmaster then shrugged, and looking down at the still unconscious girl in his arms, he pushed through to the headmaster's office.

"My dear boy! What on earth happened to dear, Ms. Rook?" Dumbledore asked, the twinkle in his eye instantly disappearing.

"It seems that Ms. Rook partook in some spiked punch, headmaster. She doesn't remember if there was alcohol, but that doesn't mean that it wasn't indeed imbued with something besides sugar. I thought you should know and seeing as I know not where she lives, figured you would take her home to sober up," Severus said simply.

He gently placed the sleeping girl on the most comfortable chair in the office, laying her so her legs were over one arm. _'She looks quite peaceful,'_ he thought. He shook his head just as he was about to move some of her hair out of her face. He quickly looked up seeing Dumbledore look at him with a slight twinkle back in his eyes. Severus rolled his and stepped away.

"Unfortunately Severus, my dear boy, you have interrupted some personal business of mine and I am rather fond of finishing it." He wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to Severus. "There you will find Ms. Rook's address. You may take my floo directly there. I am quite sure her floo network is open. I am also sure her familiar would appreciate some nourishment after all these hours being home alone. If you would be so kind as to help an old man out." Dumbledore was smiling as he said this and Severus just sneered in response.

"Very well, sir. If you think that is best."

"I do, my friend. I do, indeed. On your way back, you should be able to just floo back into your office. I'll arrange it. Have a good night!" Dumbledore exclaimed as a dismissal. Severus just nodded, went to the fireplace and threw some grayish powder in. The flames went green as he went back to pick up his apprentice that was softly snoring. He walked into the flames, said the address and added "Natalia's Home!" In a flash of green flames and a _'whoosh',_ they were both gone.

"You can come out, Minerva. They are gone. Where were we, my love?" Dumbledore asked with a mischievous glint in his eyes. A soft chuckle was heard from the adjacent private chambers.

Severus stumbled a step before catching his balance unused to the added weight of his apprentice. A low growl was heard and he looked around until he saw the source. He rolled his eyes. _'Of course_, _the witch would have a cat as her familiar,'_ he thought to himself as he sighed.

Severus walked carefully around the small cottage and looked into two different rooms before finding her sleeping quarters. He looked around at the deteriorated room before laying her gently on the bed. He took the potions out of his dress robe pockets and set them on the small bedside table that was next to the bed. The tabby cat twisted lithely around the table, curious as to what this strange man was doing. It protested loudly as it saw its human laying on the bed. The cat jumped gracefully onto the bed and immediately curled up next to Natalia's side.

Severus rolled his eyes at the feline and growled softly as the animal was now making his job a bit harder. He sat on the edge of the bed on Natalia's other side. He gently shook her. "Ms. Rook. You must take these potions. Or at the very least the hangover potion. It will make you feel better and you won't have a raging headache in the morning. Wake. Up."

Natalia stirred, blinking her eyes slowly. When she came to and was lucid enough to realize where she was, she started.

"Professor? Why are you in my house? What is wrong? What happened?" she asked curiously. Severus just put the vial of the potion into her hand.

"Just drink. I will explain later. How are you feeling?"

"Sick. Like my head is full of cotton, and my stomach is churning. Why am I home? What happened at the dam-"

Severus interrupted her, raising her hand to silence her. "Just drink." She did so, after unstoppering the vials and taking a quick sniff and waited for him to continue. "It seems that someone had spiked the punch bowl and you drank too much. I told the headmaster. I am sure he is handling it. There isn't any reason to worry." He looked at her for a moment, then frowned.

"Except the fact that a potential potions apprentice couldn't tell that the punch was spiked. That is something to be worried about."

Natalia frowned but nodded silently. She looked down at her knees, ashamed. "You are right, Professor. I should have realized. I just didn't think the students would do something like that. There was so much entertainment as it was."

Severus nodded. "So you would think, but the students are all dunderheaded fools. Now, rest. I must return to the school and see what all I can do to figure out who did this." Severus stood after saying that and turned to leave the room.

"Thank you, Professor. For everything."

Severus stopped in his tracks and turned, but Natalia was already asleep. With a quick wave of his wand, the blankets on the bed rearranged themselves to lay atop of her sleeping form. With that, he left.

Severus returned to Hogwarts by apparition. He quickly walked up the small hill to the gates and entered the school. It was still early in the morning, about Two, and students were still dancing and cavorting merrily. He went right up to the drink table and saw, to his dismay, that the punch was still on the table. He growled to himself, irritated that Dumbledore hadn't handled the situation, and a few nearby students squealed in fear before running to the other side of the room.

He summoned an empty vial and filled it with the punch, then vanished the rest after calling for a house elf to replace the lot. He quickly turned, his robes swaying behind him as he made off to the dungeons. He got to his office and slammed the door behind him. The other professors would be enough to handle the few remaining dunderheads that were still dancing. This way he could focus on whatever it was that was slipped into the punch. With that thought, he got to work.

Severus wondered why he even cared what they spiked the punch with. He knew the answer of course. It's because it had affected _**her.**_ Natalia, his apprentice, and ex-student. The girl _-No, woman-_ he was trying to steel himself against. Only to keep a professional relationship of course and not because he was deathly afraid of relationships. No, that wasn't the reason at all.

If he was completely honest with himself, he didn't care what his dunderheaded students spiked the punch with other than the fact that his apprentice couldn't even tell if there was alcohol in it. Which meant one of two things; Either he had more work with his apprentice than he originally had thought or his blockheaded students had spiked it with something that was colorless, tasteless and odorless.

'Hmm,' he sighed. This could become an interesting night as the alcoholic beverages he was aware of all had a distinct taste _and_ smell. This meant that his idiotic students had got their hands on something they shouldn't have been able to, too easily. Now it was time to discover what it was.

Severus pushed all thoughts of Natalia to the back of his mind and got to work. The first thing he did was place a replenishing charm on the vial. This would ensure he had enough of the spiked punch to work with, as a vial wasn't really all that big. He waved his wand over the vial casting various poison detection spells. They all came back negative just like he thought they would. He had to check, though.

Seeing as it wasn't poisoned, Severus filled a small dropper with the punch and dropped a small amount into his own mouth. Just enough to taste and a small enough amount that it wouldn't actually do any damage if it was something else. He swished the little bit around in his mouth trying to taste anything out of the ordinary. He didn't taste anything abnormal, just the fruity flavor of the punch. "Well, well," he murmured. "It seems like my new apprentice wasn't mistaken after all." He was relieved that Ms. Rook wouldn't be as much as a disappointment as he thought with this incident.

Severus started to get frustrated. He had run various tests for most everything he could possibly think of and everything he had run came back negative. He knew something was in the punch but he just was coming up with zilch. He waved his wand over the vial once again putting a 48-hour detection charm on it and decided to go to bed. He wasn't going to be able to think with lack of sleep and being frustrated wasn't helping. He would try again with a fresh mind later.

When Severus woke up after a short nap, he decided he would check his detection charm and go check on Natalia. He walked over to where he had left the vial that morning and looked at it with a very confused look on his face. He was completely positive when he went to bed that the punch had been a ruby red but now, now it was a soft pink. "Well," he murmured to himself. "That is definitely a strange effect for alcohol to take. I'm starting to think this isn't just any alcohol if it's alcohol at all."

Severus turned away from the vial. Walked over to his fireplace and took out his jar of floo powder. Throwing some of the grayish powder into the fire he said "Natalia's home," and put his head in the fire. "Ms. Rook," he called. "Are you decent?" When he didn't get a response he started to worry that something was wrong. "Natalia," he called again. "I'm coming through." With that, he pulled his head back and stepped through the flames, and returned to Natalia's cottage.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

**AN: **Hey, guys! I hope you are still enjoying the story! Things are about to heat up soon and get more interesting as the apprenticeship starts! But first, we have to figure out what is going on at the Yule Ball! In the original version, I had BeautiflDisastar co-writing with me. With both of our schedules conflicting, I am not sure if we will be able to continue that, but I will always give her credit where it is due. When we have chapters that she didn't co-write with me, I will let you all know. Without further ado, Here is chapter 6!

**Chapter 6**

Severus appeared in Natalia's floo seconds later and the fire died down with a _'pop'_. He shook a little ash off his school robes and stepped into the living room. He looked around carefully, listening for any indication of life. A quiet 'meow' came from the bedroom and Severus followed it. He came into the room and Natalia was still sleeping. It was in the early hours of the morning now, a little after three in the morning, so that was not surprising to him. However, he needed to test his theory. He went over to the bed, gently shaking Natalia by the shoulders he said, "Ms. Rook. I need you to wake up. Ms. Rook?"

Natalia started to stir, blinking slowly. She looked around, seemingly disoriented. "Professor? Is it time for my lesson? Wha-"

She stopped talking and just looked at him for a moment. Severus raised a brow. "Ms. Rook. What are you feeling right now? Do you have a headache? Nause-" He was suddenly cut off when a finger touched his lips. He scowled, about to pull away when Natalia used her spare hand to pull him towards her. He was caught off guard and fell on his hands, which rested on either side of Natalia's body. She smiled up at him, her eyes glazed over.

"Oh, Severus. Hmmm. I'm glad that you are here. Saving me. My hero." She smiled giddily up at him, nibbling on her bottom lip. Severus frowned down at her, shaking his head, he quickly stood up.

"Ms. Rook. I think you have been manipulated by the punch to have… certain feelings for me. You need to snap out of it. I am your potions master starting tomorrow. You are my apprentice. You _will_ act like it. **Now!**" Severus tried the stern routine. If she was as infatuated with him as he thought, perhaps he could snap her out of it. He was hopeful. A feeling he hadn't felt in ages.

Natalia started in surprise, backing away from him, nearly in fear. The infatuation disappearing instantly from her eyes. She looked down at herself and blushed. She covered herself more with her blanket. Severus nodded. It seemed that any other quick stimulation of another emotion cancels out the effects of whatever was added to the punch.

A horrifying thought occurred to him. Many students of each school fourth year and above had been present during the dance and Merlin knows how many of those students drank the contaminated punch. He was going to have a school of infatuated teenagers on his hands. He had to consult with Dumbledore right away. "I'm sorry, Ms. Rook, but I have to leave." With a sudden, loud _'pop_', Severus was gone.

Severus landed outside of the school gates and started walking towards the castle at a quick pace. He walked into the lower west floor the entrance brought him to and started towards the Grand staircase to get to the headmaster's office, his robes billowing behind him. "Bogey flavored beans," he hissed at the stone gargoyle guarding the office. The gargoyle leaped to life revealing the swirling stone staircase. Severus knocked on the headmaster's door after walking up the spiral staircase for what seemed the fifth time that night.

Severus heard muffled talking while he was waiting for permission to enter. After a few seconds, Dumbledore answered looking quite disheveled. His robes looked like they had been quickly thrown on and his long hair and beard were wild looking. "Headmaster!" Severus gasped "Are you alright?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "I assure you, dear boy, I am quite fine. Now I take it this isn't a social call. Please come in."

Stepping into the office after the headmaster, Severus strode over to the chair in front of the headmaster's desk and sat down. "Albus, we have a slight problem."

"Oh?" Dumbledore responded looking quite amused. "Anything to do with a certain young lady? Ms. Rook, perhaps?"

"Not exactly," Severus said shooting Dumbledore a funny look.

"Oh, do explain!" Dumbledore said looking even more amused than before.

"Well, to be honest sir, we are going to have an entire school of love-induced imbeciles on our hands," Severus explained exasperatedly. Minerva seemed to magically appear at those words from the headmaster's personal chambers.

"Love-induced?" she asked sharply. Minerva McGonagall looked just as disheveled as the headmaster. Her graying auburn hair, usually in a top knot, was hanging frazzled down to her collarbone. Her normally immaculate robes were crinkled. The only thing that seemed not to be out of place was the tight grimace on her face. Severus had a terrifying thought come to him based on both Minerva and Dumbledore's appearances. With the question poised on his lips, he decided he really didn't want to know after all.

"What on earth do you mean, Severus!" Minerva exclaimed, snapping him out of his reverie.

"Well, Minerva. The punch at the dance was compromised. I had no idea about it until Ms. Rook ended up passing out on me while walking the Slytherins to the dungeon. However, it was not alcohol. I believe it's an infatuation potion. It's odorless, tasteless and colorless. Virtually undetectable," Severus explained.

"When I went to check on Ms. Rook a few minutes ago, she... she tried to pull me into her arms and called me her hero. It wasn't until I snapped at her in my frightful demeanor that she seemed to snap out of it," he concluded. Minerva gasped while Dumbledore seemed to be trying not to laugh.

"Something you'd like to share headmaster?" Severus asked grumpily. "It seems to me that the culprit, or culprits, got one over on you." Dumbledore laughed. "It seems to me, headmaster, that you know more than you're letting on," Severus growled. Dumbledore just chuckled his eyes twinkling merrily.

"Oh, I think not Severus. You know that nothing happens in this school without me knowing. I just don't see the harm in this. It is mere infatuation. It isn't a lust potion after all. No need to fret." His eyes twinkled as he said this. Severus just stared at him, unimpressed.

"How do you explain Potter's name getting in the goblet then?" he asked defiantly. Dumbledore's smile dropped and turned into a frown immediately.

"That, my boy, I am still looking into. You have a point, but as it were, I do know who was involved and they will be dealt with. As you said, an extreme emotion besides the infatuation will stop the effects. Shouldn't be too hard to get Peeves recruited to scare the students." After thinking a moment, he continued. "Actually, Severus, if I could get you to send the Bloody Baron to me that would be most pleasant," Dumbledore said.

"The Bloody Baron?" Severus questioned.

"Yes, I'm sure that The Baron will be most agreeable on enlisting Peeves for our cause. As you know he's the only person that Peeves will listen to and I'd rather not waste time trying to set rules that Peeves will ignore coming from me," Dumbledore explained dismissively.

"Of course, sir," Severus replied turning to leave.

Severus walked to the astronomy tower stairs and started climbing them. He figured he would check here first as this was one of the Baron's favorite spots. As he reached the top of the stairs he could hear the baron's chains clanking about and soft moaning.

"Baron?" Severus called out as he entered the tower. The clanking stopped.

"What do you want, Snape?" the Baron asked gruffly. "You're interrupting my daily haunt."

"The headmaster wishes to have a word with you about Peeves."

The Baron groaned. "If I wasn't already dead, that damn poltergeist would likely be the death of me. Very well then." Without another word, he glided away through the wall.

With it being so early in the morning as Severus had only slept about half an hour and between Natalia and the headmaster had taken about an hour, it was still relatively early. He decided to go relieve one of the teachers from their post at the dance. Just as he had thought, there were a few stragglers left at the ball. He spotted Potter, Granger, Lovegood, the Weasley boy and his sister, Malfoy, Zambini, Goyle, Crabbe, Abbott, Longbottom, Delacour, Krum, the older Greengrass girl, and Nott.

He observed them for a minute and it seemed everything was alright actually. No one was acting out of the ordinary. Granger was glaring at the Weasley boy while Potter stood to the side looking uncomfortable. The Weasley girl was dancing awkwardly with Longbottom. Greengrass, Zambini, Malfoy, Nott, Goyle, and Crabbe were sitting around talking. Lovegood was doing some odd dance waving her hands above her head. Not completely normal but normal enough for that girl. Abbott was swaying to the music by herself as it seems she came alone. Delacour and Krum were talking about the differences between their schools and this one. Krum was telling Fleur that it was much warmer here than at Durmstrang. Completely normal. Severus sighed in relief.

About ten minutes after he thought that pandemonium struck. He could pinpoint the exact moment. He saw Potter's eyes glaze over as he strode over to the Greengrass girl, Daphne, Severus believed her name was and yanked her up to his lips. Instead of hexing him like Severus was sure she would have done, Daphne just put her arms around Potter's neck and kissed him back. Unfortunately, that was just the start.

Zambini walked up to Granger and pulled her onto the dance floor, pulled her body close to his, dipped her head back, claimed her mouth and started running his hands up and down her body. Granger turned wanton at that moment and jumped into Zambini's arms as he carried her out into the gardens where moans of "Blaise" started coming from moments later

Longbottom had walked over to Abbott and had her up against a wall ravishing her like Severus didn't believe the boy capable of doing. Actually, Severus wasn't even sure some of the things Longbottom was doing to Abbott were legal in either the muggle or wizarding world. Abbott was making moaning sounds against Longbottom's lips. Severus shook his head. This was pure madness.

He watched as his godson Draco walked up to the Weasley girl and pulled her onto the terrace where she began to wrap her legs around Draco and kissed him feverishly as Draco moaned against her hands rubbing along his crotch. The Weasley boy, however, was turning an impressive shade of red watching his best mates and sister do unspeakable things with the Slytherins. He looked like his head was about to explode. Severus silently congratulated his godson on making the Weasley boy angry. He knew it was wrong but he couldn't help himself.

Lovegood had seemingly charmed Nott and was whispering into his ear about wrackspurts. Nott growled at her to shut up, pushed her against the nearby door and had his mouth on hers while thoughtlessly grinding her against him. Lovegood seemed to like the rougher side of Nott if moaning loudly against his lips was any indication. Severus studied the Lovegood girl for a moment and noticed her eyes weren't glazed over like the rest of her peers. She caught him staring, gave him a small smile, a wink and returned her attention back to Nott. _'The little vixen knew exactly what she was doing,'_ Severus thought amused that the Ravenclaw had gotten one over on one of his Slytherins.

The delegates from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons had each other pushed onto the table and were kissing each other with an urgency Severus hadn't seen the likes of before. Krum was murmuring something about finding out just how good Fleur was at riding broomsticks. Fleur, it seemed had turned her full veela power on and had it directed at Krum as the poor boy was helpless against her.

Severus wanted to obliviate himself or anything else to get the sights he was seeing out of his head. While he had thought to see Draco and the Weasley girl was bad, he hadn't seen the worst of it until he turned to look at what he assumed was safe. Crabbe and Goyle. He was very very mistaken as Crabbe had his hands in Goyle's dress robes while Goyle had his lips locked with Crabbe's. Severus quickly turned to look at the other teachers only to find that they were looking on frozen to the scene before them with pure shock.

Severus knew he should go and get the headmaster but he found his thoughts wandering to Natalia. He wondered what it would be like to hear the gasping moans coming out of her while she lay naked, writhing beneath him and begging for more. What it would be like to have Natalia's mouth greedily sucking on his hardened length.

Severus vehemently shook his head. Those thoughts were way out of line. She is his _**apprentice!**_ He should not be having any thoughts about her other than how to help her become better at potions. He shook his head again and started running towards the headmaster's office before those dangerous thoughts could return.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** As you may have noticed, I have officially deleted my first version of this story off of Fanfiction. Net. Also, I have taken the** (Revamped) **off the title. So for any of you that follow and get alerts for this story, the **(Revamped)** will **NO** longer be in the title.

So, with that all taken care of, things are finally getting into it! Apprenticeship is happening soon, details are coming together. A few of you have messaged me your theories, but I won't tell! not yet! Again my wonderful partner BeautiflDisastar helped write this. I have changed a few details in this chapter, adding a bit more info, taking out bits and pieces here and there. Tried to have it make more sense in the Ghost/breakfast scene. New readers will know what I am talking about when you get there. Returning readers, I hope it makes more sense to you.

On another note! I wanted to show some recognition to our readers! We hit 34 subscribers and while that may not seem like a lot, for my first fanfic, that is more than I ever thought I would get! It was even more than my first version. And so, in recognition of that, I will be giving a shout out to a few of you that have subscribed already! And for those that haven't yet, I will add you once you do! So please! Subscribe to alerts, review, pm me with any questions, comments, or concerns. I would love, love, love! to hear from you guys more!

* * *

**This chapter is dedicated to** Amarenima Redwood and Scarlett Raye for being my first reviewers! Also Amarenima Redwood and Scarlett Raye, (again), Calindy, Charmed2100, Evilhyperpixie13, Kuisun, Mel2121, TheUnknownSouthJutlander, Zafrina, and marzipan4 for being my first 10 readers that followed this version! Thank you for your support everyone! Please read and review, any constructive criticism is welcome! 3

* * *

**Chapter 7**

For the third time that night, Severus walked up to the stone gargoyle, spit out a password and impatiently waited for it to move so he could stomp up the stairs to disturb the headmaster yet again. Hopefully, he wouldn't be so… disheveled this time around.

The office door was already open, so Severus strolled right inside. Dumbledore looked up from his work and silently motioned to a chair in front of him. Severus took one and sat. He waited a moment before asking, "Has the Bloody Baron told Peeves what to do to fix this Headmaster?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Indeed. He just left before you got here and told me about the extreme actions this potion had. It seems that Ms. Rook partook of the punch more often than the students, which is why she reacted to it much quicker. But it is much more potent the longer it is in the body as well, hence the strong reactions from the students compared to Ms. Rook's damsel in distress act even though they took less than she did."

Severus frowned deeply at that comment. He was trying to forget that moment and sincerely hoped that Natalia would as well. He shrugged and wanting to change the topic asked, "What is Peeves to do?"

Dumbledore just smiled. "I am sure he will take his responsibilities quite seriously. It is not every day that he gets free reign to bother the students. He is probably down there as we speak, dropping dungbombs or water balloons to surprise them. Then in the morning, he has his orders to be sure all students are no longer affected; not just the stragglers from tonight. Everything will be fine, Severus. Nothing to worry about."

Severus just frowned and nodded. "As you wish. I will just retire for the night then. I have papers to grade, then tomorrow is the first day of the apprenticeship."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "Ah yes. Ms. Rook will be spending a lot of time here. I hope she enjoys it. It will certainly be an interesting experience."

Severus just shrugged, standing and going to leave. "Try not to be too hard on her Severus. It wasn't her fault how she acted tonight. Don't hold it against her." Severus paused for a moment, his back to the headmaster. He nodded and left the room.

/

Natalia was laying in her bed, thinking and rethinking of all the actions of the dance. She was trying to remember if she saw anyone put anything in the punch, but she couldn't recollect. She sighed in frustration. All she remembered was glancing out of the corner of her eye to search for her old professor.

Well, not old per se. Her former professor. He was only a few years older than she was. She stopped to think about it. She graduated in 1989 at age 17. It was currently 1994 and she was 22. He couldn't be more than ten to 15 years older than her. Either way, his experience, and knowledge would soon be hers. Slowly but surely as she apprenticed with him, she would learn what he knew and she would use that to help in the Order of the Phoenix that the headmaster spoke about.

She nodded to herself, thinking of the Order now. It was a distracting enough notion that she thought of it until she fell asleep.

The next morning, Natalia woke up groggy and grumpy. That hangover potion was having no effect since she wasn't actually drunk. She was thankful for the pepperup potion that was still on her bedside table where Severus had left it. Because of her grogginess, she couldn't quite remember what happened last night. All she remembered was getting sick on a suit of armor right in front of-

"Oh, gods. He saw me… he's never going to want me as an apprentice now. How embarrassing!" she despaired. She turned over in her bed, face in a pillow, her dress rustling.

She screamed into her pillow, then immediately grimaced at the migraine that throbbed in the front of her head. She groaned turning back over and looked over to the potion that was left for her. She quickly unstoppered the vial and drank it down in one shot. She shivered as she felt the potion take effect and smiled. She hopped out of bed, disrobed and jumped into the shower.

After she was clean, she got dressed in some casual clothes. Not sure exactly how to dress as an apprentice of a well-known potions master, she decided to go safe and wear clothes that she wouldn't worry about getting dirty. A _Spellbound_ band t-shirt and some tight fitting jeans seemed alright. The t-shirt had a bit of paint on it from when she tried to paint the headboard of her bed. When that didn't work out she sanded off the paint on the headboard making it look distressed, but the paint was never able to come out of the shirt no matter how many spells she pointed at it.

She tied her hair in a ponytail, her natural waves falling over her right shoulder. She started her daily beauty regimen putting on her homemade face crème and letting it set. She brushed her teeth before washing it off. Afterward, she was presentable and ready to go. However, she was still very early. She cast a 'tempus' charm and it told her that it was barely after 6 am. She sighed and decided to send an owl to her new master to see what time he wanted her.

She shivered at the thought then shook her head. 'Get your head out of the gutter Natalia. He is there to teach you. To teach you about potions and how to be a potions mistress. This is not something to mess up!'

She sighed and started writing.

_Master Snape,_

_I don't wish to disturb you so please only respond when you are able. I was wondering when the best time to start the apprenticeship would be. You told me the Saturday after the Yule Ball, but not a time. Honestly, I am not sure you even want to still have me as your apprentice after my behavior last night. Please forgive me. I will never embarrass you like that again._

_Your apprentice,_

_Natalia Rook_

She summoned her owl that liked to stay in a nearby tree on the property of her cottage and gave him the letter. She offered him a treat if he would hurry back with a response.

"But don't bug Master Snape. He may not give you an answer at all." The owl affectionately nipped her finger and flew away.

/

Severus woke that morning to the pecking of his window. Even though his office was in the dungeons, part of a window was still exposed just for this purpose. He sighed, heaved the warm, green flannel blankets off of him and walked over the chilled cobble floor to the window. The frigid morning air rushed in as he opened it and an owl flew farther inside as if trying to get away from the cold itself. With a wave of his hand and a silent word, the fireplace in his chambers burst to life and the raw warmth of it made him shiver.

He went to the animal and it extended its foot, a letter wrapped in its talons. Severus extended his hand and when the animal didn't immediately give him the message, he just arched a brow. The owl chirped playfully and dropped the letter in his opened hand. Severus smirked at the cheeky animal as he unraveled the message and read. He sighed. The girl thought that he wouldn't want to even start the apprenticeship. Silly girl. She had no control over any of her actions from the early morning. He was sure that she didn't mean to pull him into her bed while she was under the influence of a potion.

Severus sighed again and went to write a reply. He looked at the time from the small clock in his office and noticed it was almost 7 am. He wrote his reply and gave it to the owl. He pet its silky feathers gently and gave it a small smile. "Be safe and fly straight, little one."

The owl pecked his fingers softly and flew near the window. Severus summoned his wand and with a slight flick of his wrist, the window opened and the owl flew away. He closed the window again and set off to get ready for his first apprentice lesson.

/

Natalia showed up fifteen minutes earlier than what his reply was.

_9 am. My potions classroom._

_-S.S_

She didn't want to be late for her first lesson. She stood outside his classroom door and just waited. At about ten to the hour, the classroom door opened and Severus started in surprise.

"Ms. Rook. I didn't expect you to be this early." He cleared his throat. "Come in then. We can get started." She reminded him of a very talented student that was normally always early, not that he would ever acknowledge her, though. Insufferable know-it-all.

Natalia walked into the classroom. She was instantly hit with a wave of nostalgia. She remembered brewing a Forgetfulness potion here as a first-year student and barely getting the ingredients right. She remembered brewing a wit sharpening potion as a fourth-year student and Professor Snape telling her it was Acceptable but barely so. Her fondest memory was Professor Snape giving Hufflepuff house ten points because she was able to tell him all the effects of the Wiggenweld potion in her third year.

"Daydreaming, Ms. Rook?" Severus asked looking amused, snapping Natalia out of her reverie.

"No sir, just the memories that being in this classroom brings back." Natalia cheerfully replied.

"Well, instead of dwelling on the memories of the past, perhaps you would like to start making new ones as my apprentice and not a student?" Severus chided reminding her that she was there to start an apprenticeship and not to daydream.

"Yes, Sir. Sorry, Master." Natalia replied having the grace to look embarrassed.

Severus wanted to see how much more advanced her potion-making skills were. That way he would know exactly how much work he had ahead of him before she could become a potion mistress. He decided to start out with something simple; a calming draught. This was a draught required to pass the O.W.L.s. so, being a Hogwarts graduate, she should be able to brew it easily. If her draught passed his expectations he would proceed to have her making a batch of polyjuice potion because he wanted to see what her skill level with that advanced potion was. Especially since she was brewing it regularly.

"Go to the ingredient cabinet and get what is needed to make a Calming Draught," he told her. He had purposely not given her an ingredient list. He watched with approval as she gathered all the correct ingredients; Scurvy Grass, Peppermint, cut Ginger Root, powdered Moonstone and Belladonna.

After she had brought all the ingredients back to the table in front of him he gave her a time limit. "You have exactly two and a half hours to make a batch of Calming Draught. That should be more than enough time," he explained.

He watched her with a look of hidden fascination for the next two and a half hours. She first measured out her ingredients before anything else, as any good potions apprentice would. Five cups of water, a dash of scurvy grass, a sprig of peppermint, ¼ pound of cut ginger root and a cup of powdered moonstone. She couldn't exactly measure out her Belladonna yet as she only needed three drops.

Once she had her ingredients measured, she got out her brass cauldron. She put the fire on high, poured her five cups of water in and brought it to a boil. She then added her powdered moonstone and stirred it until it was dissolved. She then added her ginger, scurvy grass, and peppermint. She then turned the fire onto low as she was supposed to. Over the next 30 minutes, she allowed her potion to simmer, stirring it once every ten minutes as required.

After the thirty minutes was up she added the three drops of Belladonna and her potion turned an amber color, just like it was supposed to. She allowed her potion to settle for 15 minutes after removing her cauldron from the flames instead of jumping the gun and saying her potion was complete. Her potion settled and it was still the amber color required. She then summoned five, one cup vials and carefully poured her potion into them.

She picked up one of the vials, brought it to his desk and presented it to him. Severus took the vial from her and looked it over. It was the correct amber color. He unstoppered it and smelled it. The Calming Draught smelled amazing just as it should. He poured the potion into his mouth and swallowed. He immediately felt the effects of the potion taking place as he felt calmer than he had over the last few weeks.

He looked at Natalia and smiled. "If I were grading this, Ms. Rook, I would give this an Outstanding. It is a perfect version of the calming draught. Great job."

Natalia couldn't help it. She blushed head to toe at the compliment Master Snape had given her. "Thank you, Master, that means quite a lot," she gushed. Severus looked amused.

"I think that will be enough for today, Ms. Rook. Why don't you take the rest of the day and write me a ten paragraph essay on the proper brewing technique, ingredients, and effects of Polyjuice Potion."

Natalia nodded. "Yes, Master."

"You can use my floo as it is connected with yours, to get home if you wish," Severus told her.

"No, thank you, Master. I told Madame Pomfrey that I would come up after my first day. I'm sure she is chomping at the bit to hear how everything went," she told him. With his nod of dismissal, she left his classroom, heading towards the hospital wing.

Once she walked through the hospital wing doors Poppy immediately stopped magically making the hospital beds. "Natalia, my dear girl!" she exclaimed. "I didn't expect you for another few hours."

Natalia smiled tiredly. "Well, Poppy, Master Snape let me go after finishing my potion. However, he did leave me with an essay to write. It's just like being back at school," she said as she sighed.

"Come now, Natalia. Let's go and have a cuppa tea and some scones," Poppy suggested before busying herself with requesting the refreshments from an elf. Natalia sat down and sighed again. She really needed to get her head straight about her potions master.

She had barely been able to concentrate on brewing her calming draught. Every time she had allowed herself to look up, Master Snape was watching her with those piercing obsidian eyes and then he would smirk. It was almost as if he could read her mind.

'Oh, gods! I really hope that he actually can't,' she thought to herself. During the brewing process, she had been admiring her Master's exquisite features again. She really needed to get her head on straight as she fully intended on being the best apprentice alive. She really did want to learn all that he could teach her.

He was one of the best potion Masters alive and she wasn't about to throw this wonderful opportunity that she'd been gifted away by acting like a teenaged schoolgirl mooning over her first crush. No, Natalia Rook was better than that. She would take this opportunity and use it to the fullest. She would learn everything he had to offer and then some. She would beat this crush feeling into the ground and make Poppy proud.

She shook her head coming out of her thoughts with a determined look on her face. She realized that she'd been so dazed into her thoughts that Poppy had finished making the tea and scones. She was currently sitting across from her looking amused.

"A sickle for your thoughts, my dear," Poppy said chuckling.

"I was just thinking about this amazing opportunity you've gifted me and how I'm going to make you proud by learning everything I can from Master Snape. Thank you so much for making this apprenticeship possible," Natalia said, her voice dripped with gratefulness.

"It's not a problem, my dear," Poppy said. From that, they talked about Harry Potter, the Triwizard Tournament, different illnesses that the students have gotten or how they've managed to magically hurt themselves.

Poppy told Natalia of a particularly interesting piece of gossip. While Natalia had been spending the day apprenticing with Severus and gossiping with Poppy, the Bloody Baron and Peeves had been working on and putting in effect a plan to scare the students back to normal. They had decided to enlist the help of the other Hogwarts ghosts from the Fat Friar of Hufflepuff to The Grey Lady of Ravenclaw.

As ghosts, they could do just about anything. This was going to be a day for the ghosts to remember. Peeves was absolutely beside himself as he had the express permission of Headmaster Dumbledore and The Bloody Baron to create all this chaos. This had never, in his death of being a poltergeist, occurred.

At first, they had thought of enlisting a few boggarts but the Fat Friar had pointed out that the students would recognize what it was and simply use the countercurse 'Riddiculus' and their fun would be short lived. The Hogwarts ghosts definitely wanted their fun to be remembered for years to come.

The ghosts went through many scenarios from having their heads pop up from inside the toilets to having the Headless Hunt put on one of their spectacularly scary shows. They went round and round about what they should do until they finally devised the absolutely perfect plan. They devised the plan to take place starting from when the dance was finishing all the way through during breakfast time that way all the students affected would all be affected. At least they hoped…

According to Poppy, what had actually happened was this. As the students that were most affected were separated and escorted to their common rooms, the ghosts would pop out of the walls scaring them on their path. Then during breakfast the next morning, a fine mist started swirling near the floor. It got thicker the farther into the room it got. The temperature lowered dramatically and the students immediately fell silent. Suddenly the Great Hall doors blew open and an onslaught of the Hogwarts ghosts came flying in. Some even popped up from the floors. They were wailing and crying, their chains banging the nearest object they hit. Nearly-Headless Nick was flying around the room, moaning as his head was wobbling unbalanced on his shoulders.

The Bloody Baron just pointed and laughed as Peeves came flying through chucking mud balls he took from the greenhouses. They hit many students, not just the ones that were perhaps still afflicted by the contaminated punch the previous night. The group of ghosts known as the Headless Hunt started to juggle each other's heads in sync. Many of the first year students started looking green just from witnessing all this, threatening to return all the rich foods they just ate.

The Grey Lady from Ravenclaw was just wailing and flying through many of the students that were affected by the drink, double checking that they were better. Harry was first and he shivered and blanched as she flew straight through him. He gagged a bit and groaned. This happened to many of the other students, one by one. Ginny, Draco, Marcus, Hermione. They each were run through by ghosts, disgusted as the mud was slung into their faces from Peeves, and terrified when one of the Headless Hunt member's head fell on their plate.

After a while of this chaos, Dumbledore snapped his fingers. The Bloody Baron immediately called for Peeves who looked crestfallen that his fun had come to an end. One by one the ghosts disappeared into the walls or portraits that lined the back wall. All the students were in too much shock to do anything. They looked to Dumbledore who had stood up and went to his podium. With twinkling eyes and a great smile, he said, "Well then! I think that you all should clean up before your first class! Skip, skip!"

They must have talked for hours because the next thing Natalia knew, it was turning into the late evening. "Oh," Natalia exclaimed. "I have to get going. I have an essay to write still and I'd like to get to bed early so I'm not irritable in the morning."

"Of course, sweetheart," Poppy said understandingly. "Come back by anytime. We'll have tea and scones again." Natalia nodded and left the hospital wing. Once outside of the castle and into the area she could apparate, she went home.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN: **Hope you are all enjoying. I would love to see more reviews, questions, and comments! It keeps me focused, motivated, and humbled by all your encouraging words. I am adding a bit of filler info in this chapter to make the apprenticeship seem more real, so it is one of my shorter chapters. I also don't really think that enough info is in the main books about potions, what they do, how to brew them, different effects, etc. It took a lot of research and planning to (hopefully) get it all right! I hope you enjoy! Also, I apologize for the long wait. I have been rearranging my home, doing a little spring cleaning, taking care of my (almost) 9-month-old son, and being the only person in my 5 person household not working, I've been doing everyone's laundry and dishes and taking care of animals that aren't mine. I have been a bit overwhelmed. This chapter has been written for months now and in my doc manager for just as long. I have just been a little cluster fucked and forget what day is what. Time flies when you're busy. Anywhoozers! I'm sorry guys. I will try to do better, but you all know how life gets! Happy reading!

* * *

**Dedicated:** Today's chapter is dedicated to victoria cullen35, Wzoiee, Reclamer4theB-of-B, Ladymoonscar, Moon-night-ninja, Welsummer, shadows-in-hell , Stargazer1010, Astaruthsqueiroz, Lady Jensen. For being the next 10 followers of the story. I love the number of followers going up, it is definitely encouraging and I appreciate you all so much.

* * *

**Chapter 8**

Natalia landed in her kitchen with a _'pop'_. Her feline familiar Freya instantly started weaving her body in between her legs meowing pathetically. "Yes, Freya, I'll fill your dish," Natalia laughed. After giving Freya her favorite food, Natalia plopped down at the kitchen table and began summoning her potions books toward her.

One by one, the books flew to her and landed in a neat pile on top of the table. Beginning with **Potions Through The Ages**, continuing on with **Potions 101, The Uses and Effects Of Household Potions** and ending with **Common Misunderstandings Of Advanced Potions**. Everything she would need to complete her essay assigned to her by Master Snape.

Summoning her favorite eagle feathered quill, black ink pot, and parchment, she got to work. Stopping only to count her paragraphs and reread her essay to make sure she included enough. Once she was happy with how much she had written she reread it one last time.

_The polyjuice potion is effective anywhere from only ten minutes all the way up to 12 hours depending on the quality of ingredients and the skill of the brewer. It is not suggested to use animal hair in lieu of human hair as the transformation does not complete correctly and the effects of the human to animal transformation do not wear off in the allotted time frame. Effectively, one could be stuck in part animal form longer than intended without medical help, and even then one could very well be stuck that way forever. The taste and color of polyjuice potion vary with each use as it all depends on the hair of the person being transformed into. It has been reported that flavors could vary between tasting of fruit to vomit flavored._

Once she had completed her essay, which had managed to become fifteen paragraphs instead of ten, she laid her quill down and vanished everything on her table back to their places with a circular wave of her wand. She rolled up the parchment and tied a red string around it just to be cheeky. She sighed with relief as her essay was now finished.

Looking around and realizing that the sun had disappeared and she was feeling lazy, Natalia decided to order food in. She ordered her favorite breakfast as dinner. An American recipe called bird-in-a-bush and a butterbeer to go with it. Once her food was delivered and she had eaten, Natalia decided it was time to get ready for bed. After taking a quick shower, brushing her teeth and putting on her favorite pajamas; a comfy tank top that had a frog jumping out of a cauldron on it and matching shorts, she climbed into bed. Freya joined her to snuggle and they quickly fell asleep.

After waking up in the middle of the night due to a very _intriguing_ dream of Master Snape and herself, she decided on a cup of warm cocoa. She padded to the kitchen and absent-mindedly made a brew. She was trying to remember the dream she had had. However, it was a bit hazy and all she could really remember was that she had been happy watching Master Snape laughing and chasing a child through a house. She shook her head trying to clear her thoughts and poured her cocoa into her cup.

Sitting down at the kitchen table she drank her cocoa with small sighs of happiness escaping her lips every once in a while. When she was done she put her cup in the sink, she would wash it tomorrow and go back to sleep.

When her alarm went off at 7:00 am the next morning she arose feeling groggy and still tired. She grumpily went to the bathroom to perform her daily routine. Once that was finished she had to pick out what to wear. She settled on an army green shirt and a pair of jeans. She quickly threw her robes on over her clothes and apparated to the Three Broomsticks where she had breakfast and a cuppa tea.

Around 8:45 am she made the trek to the castle and down to the dungeons. She knocked on her master's door and waited. "Come in, Ms. Rook," was the answer. She walked up to Severus' desk and presented him with her essay and waited to be told what they would be doing today.

Severus untied his cheeky apprentice's parchment looking amused and started reading her essay, mumbling to himself every now and again. He looked up from the parchment once he was finished and said, "Well done, Ms. Rook. A little over the paragraph meter I gave you, but nonetheless an excellent essay. Very in depth about the effects of the animal to human transformation."

Natalia blushed a deep red at his compliment. "Thank you, Master" she mumbled. Severus looked at her strangely. The girl was constantly blushing around him.

He shook the thought away and said, "Today we will be gathering the ingredients and readying them for the polyjuice potion. If we have the time after that is finished we will begin the first steps on brewing it."

Natalia knew by _we_, he actually meant _her_. She would be brewing the potion while her Master observed, stepping in if needed, as was the way of an apprenticeship. She wanted to make him proud. She hoped that she would not mess this batch up by being so tense around him. She was, however, quite confident in her skills. She had brewed this potion many times in the recent past. While she only made a mistake once or twice, she felt that she had mastered it by that point.

She knew that there was going to be a lot of work today. She was going to have to do all the collecting of ingredients herself. The Fluxweed itself had to be picked under the full moon. While it was conveniently that night, she still had to find a good location where it grows. She would talk to Professor Sprout about that. She also had to get lacewing flies, she could get that from Mr. Mulpepper's Apothecary. She could get a lot of the ingredients there. Even the fluxweed, though it would be dried and fresh was said to always make for a better brew.

"Master Snape, wouldn't it be best to wait a week, start stewing the lacewing flies, then get the fluxweed under the next full moon? It would be more efficient that way as the fluxweed will be freshest then and we won't have to wait three weeks for the flies to stew."

Severus stood there just looking at her for a minute. Immediately after he frowned but nodded. "Very good, Ms. Rook. That would be a better course of action." He went to his desk, opened a drawer and pulled out a small coin purse. He grabbed a small handful of coins and walked back to Natalia.

"Take this and go get the rest of the ingredients. We can still get them ready. Also, I want you to join my seventh years in class to observe and act almost as a professor's assistant. You will help grade papers, assist students, and study when you have time. That way we can keep this apprenticeship as closely on track as possible. The headmaster has taken quite an interest in your success, Ms. Rook. I would hate to disappoint him." He looked down seriously at her as he handed over the coins.

As their fingers touched, Natalia felt a slight shock and she nearly jumped in surprise. Severus flinched back and the coins scattered a bit on the floor. Natalia immediately bent to pick them up just as Severus did the same. They bumped heads and she fell on the floor. She was rubbing her head when she saw a large hand before her. Severus was offering to help her up. She had the grace to blush shyly as she took his hand, feeling that shock again but trying to ignore it this time.

"Sorry profess- erm, master. I must just be clumsy today."

Severus released her hand and waved her apologies away. "No matter, just be more careful next time. Go now and get those items needed for the potion, and return here when you are done. I will be here for the rest of the day grading papers." He turned away and went back to his desk. She took that as a dismissal and turned to leave. She looked back once as she was nearly out the door to see Severus glancing over his shoulder at her. She blushed and hurried out the door.

/

Back at Mr. Mulpepper's apothecary, Natalia was a bit more tense than usual. Normally just walking in the shop brought her a calm sense of peace and belonging. Today, though, her thoughts were just too jumbled up. As she entered the apothecary, Mr. Mulpepper's wasn't at his usual place at the counter so she wouldn't have to pretend to be polite. She hated feeling flustered and having to talk to people. It stressed her out and she was stressed enough.

_'What was that shock? Just static? But I felt it again as he helped me up. Did he feel it too? What does it mean?'_ She was lost in her thoughts as she absent-mindedly collected the ingredients. Leeches, bicorn horn, and more boomslang skin. She would get the rest from Professor Sprout at the school. She collected all that she could before finally checking out. Mr. Mulpepper was at his post at the front desk when she was ready and he smiled at her. She reciprocated as she put her wares on the counter and silently was checked out. She nodded to him before leaving the shop.

Mr. Mulpepper looked worriedly at her and just before she left he asked, "What is bothering you, my girl? Is everything alright?"

Natalia sighed, turning around. Luckily, there was no one behind her in line. "Everything is fine, Mr. Mulpepper. Just a bit flustered today. It's my second day apprenticing under Master Snape, and he is teaching me many things. It's just a bit overwhelming at times is all. I am just trying to calm down." She smiled reassuringly at him and he returned the gesture, if not a bit hesitant, back.

"Alright, if you're sure. Congratulations on the apprenticeship, my dear. You deserve it. You are a hard worker. I have seen the work you have done, so I know you will do great!" Natalia smiled, a bit more brightly at the old man.

"Thank you, sir. I must be on my way. I have a few more things to pick up. Good day!"

Mr. Mulpepper just waved and went back to his book that was on the counter. Natalia felt a bit better from his kind words and going outside, realized how beautiful the day was. Earlier it seemed so gloomy as she was lost in her thoughts, but in reality, the sun was shining, the birds that were still there to brave the cold were singing, and there were younger children in Diagon Alley that were playing and throwing snow at each other. Natalia smiled happily, forgetting her dilemma with her professor.

She apparated back to the grounds right outside of Hogwarts, stepped through the Muggle repulsion shield and walked up the grand hill to the castle. Instead of going inside this time, she followed a path that went past the Whomping Willow and led to the Greenhouses. She waltzed pleasantly passed the grumpy deciduous plant and waited patiently as her former Head of House taught the last few minutes of her class. When the class was finally dismissed, Natalia snuck inside and stood by the door smiling kindly to the students that passed her by.

"Have you checked the clue of the egg? It has been weeks, Harry! You _have_ to figure out what it says."

"Well Hermione, every time I try, it screams at me. So unless you know of a way to get it to speak English, I'm not sure what else I can do besides get a headache!"

Natalia frowned at these words but shrugged. She had always wanted to meet the famous Harry Potter, but she had a mission and she would not be distracted. She walked up to Professor Sprout and smiled. "Hello, Professor. It is good to see you again."

"Natalia, my dear! Welcome, welcome! How are you? How is the apprenticeship with Professor Snape going?" When Natalia seemed to look surprised, Pomona laughed. "Oh, dear girl. You should have known that that sort of news wouldn't stay quiet long. Professor Snape hasn't taken an apprentice a single time in all his years. You would be his first, and what a first you will be! I have heard of your accomplishments since leaving school. And Mr. Mulpepper has to order quite a lot of things from my greenhouses in order to keep up with you!"

Natalia had the grace to blush prettily, "Thank you, Professor Sprout."

Pomona waved her words away. "Now, now silly girl. You are no longer a student here. Call me Pomona. Now, I take it you being here isn't just for a social call. What can I do for you?" she asked, smiling.

"My apprenticeship is going great! I've only had two sessions with Master Snape, so far, so there's not a lot I can tell you, though I did come to discuss an ingredient location with you. I figured you would be the best person to ask where one might find fluxweed growing." Natalia told her.

"Hmmm, the best place to find fluxweed would be…" Pomona drifted off in deep thought for a moment. "Oh yes, fluxweed commonly grows on the hills. It's a common weed but the fact that it needs to be picked under a full moon is what gives fluxweed its magical properties. I would think that the grand hill in the direction of the Forbidden Forest would be a great place for fluxweed to grow," Pomona stated happily.

Natalia thanked Professor Sprout, chatted with her a bit more about how the students were doing in herbology and Natalia's apprenticeship before leaving. Natalia was deep in thought. She hadn't been aware that she was Severus' first apprentice. She briefly wondered why he had agreed to let her apprentice under him when he hadn't taken on anyone before. She doubted that it was only because Poppy had asked him to, after all, he had yet to do something he didn't want to do.

Natalia remembered she was supposed to return to Master Snape after she was done collecting the ingredients. She would collect the Fluxweed on the next night when the moon was full. She turned to head back to Master Snape's office when she overheard a conversation between Harry Potter and the Hufflepuff champion; Cedric Diggory she believed his name was. Cedric was telling Harry to take a bath with his egg. He even gave him the prefect bathroom password.

_'How strange,'_ Natalia thought. _'Why would you take a bath with a screeching egg. Wouldn't it just intensify the volume of the egg with the echo in the bathroom?'_ She shook her head, She had enough to think about without putting the champions oddities in her thoughts as well.

She continued heading back to Master Snape. He was waiting for her when she arrived. Natalia handed the change she had left from the coins he had given her and their hands brushed in the exchange and she felt the electric jolt go through her yet again. She just shook it off this time, though, trying to play it down. She smiled hesitantly at Severus and he just nodded.

"Did you find all that you needed, Ms. Rook?" he asked. She nodded.

"Yes, sir. Professor Sprout even told me the best place to get some fluxweed when we are ready to do so. It isn't far either. A much better source then the dried fluxweed you can get at the apothecaries. I think that it will be very beneficial to have it fresh. I haven't been able to find any, or I just overlooked it as a regular weed. An oversight on my part that won't happen again, sir."

Severus nodded his approval and motioned toward his desk. While she had been gone, he either summoned a smaller desk beside his or transfigured something to become a desk. Either way, she looked at it curiously.

Severus began to explain. "For you to help grade essays, homework, and the likes, Ms. Rook. As my apprentice, you will be getting the experience of other people's views on the subject of potions. It can help broaden your own opinions, as well as jump-start different ideas. You would be surprised what things finished a hypothesis of mine just from a little opinion from another person. Something that I, myself hadn't thought of before."

Natalia nodded. "When will I start the grading, Master?" she asked.

"Tomorrow. I will save you some work, then give you the answer keys that I made up before. If you run out of papers to grade let me know and I will find more for you. Being the only potions teacher at this school, I teach all years. You being here is to alleviate some of that work. It is one of the perks for masters having apprentices," he said with a slight smirk. Natalia smiled.

"I will be glad to assist you, master. I will be back in the morning. If there is nothing else?" Severus just shook his head. She took that as a dismissal and turned on her heel. Within moments she was out the door and out of his sights.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** Hey, there guys! I hope you enjoy this DAY EARLY chapter. It is the longest one yet with a little twist. Again, thank you all for commenting, reviews, asking questions in Pms, and giving feedback! I really appreciate it and use all your suggestions to get even better! Props again to my co-writer BeautiflDisastar for just being awesome! Again, I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

* * *

**This Chapter is Dedicated to** emeraldmarie, Lost-In-The-Search-For-Love, Katey Scholz, Dragoness8982, Gnarley, GodzillaSquatch91, Shettie, DemonicAngel97, Mckenzie118, and Sackiara. Thank you all for being with me for over a month! You are all awesome and I couldn't do this without your support! Woooo! Special dedication to** nayara. aberer** (your name disappears if I don't space it, SORRY) for being our **40th subscriber!** We didn't get to 40 subscribers until Chapter 12 on the last version! I am psyched! THANK YOU!

* * *

**Chapter 9**

A few weeks later, Natalia was in the full swing of things. She was helping grade essays and homework and she was studying simpler potions after she started stewing the lacewing flies. She was going to be gathering them that afternoon and then harvest the fluxweed under the full moon that was that night. She was increasingly excited as the day went on. She could finally show Severus her skills as a potioneer. So far she had only done potions that a fifth year and above could do. Polyjuice, on the other hand, was extremely advanced because many things could go wrong in an instant.

She had heard from Severus in a rare moment of gossip that a second year was able to brew the Polyjuice Potion just a couple of years previous. Natalia was astounded and inquired on which student accomplished that feat.

"An insufferable know-it-all. It was reckless and disastrous seeing as she accidentally added the hair of a cat, but two other students transformed successfully due to her brewing," he had told her. When she realized that she would get nothing else from him, she continued on with her work.

She bought a brand new copper cauldron just for brewing the polyjuice when she first got the private order. She made sure to bring it to the school so that it would lessen the time to brew it even more.

She had all of her ingredients set out in the back of the class so they would be all ready for when Master Snape was ready for her to brew. She made sure that her cauldron was spotless, that no particles could interfere with her potion. The closer it got time to brew, the more nervous with excitement she was. To pass the time she got the lacewing flies out and let them set. Having been brewed for three weeks, they looked slimy. They were green in color normally, but after stewing, they looked like a pale, seafoam green color. It was almost translucent. She grimaced as she extracted the flies from the brew and plopped them on a strainer above a small bowl to dry.

Classes that day went by smoothly, nothing too out of the ordinary. One Gryffindor boy, Neville Longbottom, had gotten house points taken away for adding an ingredient to his Wiggenweld Potion that, if drunk, would cause the opposite effect of making someone feel better. It wasn't as extreme as the Draught of Living Death, but the person that drank it would be extremely uncomfortable. Natalia looked sad for Neville. His face looked determined as he focused more intently as to not make another mistake. He seemed like a smart young man, and he could have potential, he just needed more guidance. Natalia smiled and decided to help him when she could.

The class was dismissed and, as the last class of the day, Severus started to close the potions ingredient closet and cleaning up whatever was left from the students. When he was finished he looked over at Natalia as she was organizing her ingredients for the eighth time that class. Her brow was furrowed as she counted the flies, making sure she had enough, when actually, by his count, she had too many. He stood leaning on his desk as he _read a scroll_. While he was _reading_, he was looking under his curtain of hair to catch glimpses of the young woman. He had made a habit of this as he wasn't able to obviously look at her out of propriety. It was the little things.

The more he saw of how she worked, he realized that she had indeed improved greatly in her skill for potions. She was no longer a dunderheaded student or a slacker. She was precise, efficient, and excited to work. One day, she may even surpass his place as the greatest potion master alive, with proper guidance, of course. She had the potential. The only thing she was really lacking in was the confidence. With some of the potions, he brewed she wouldn't have the time to recount her ingredients repeatedly.

Severus thought upon the previous day's events. He had felt a jolt of electricity every time they had touched. He wondered what that was about. He had only heard of one such occurrence but it hadn't happened more than once. Lily Evans and James Potter. Lily had confided in him that the first time she had touched James accidentally, a jolt of electricity had gone through her. Severus had thought it was just static electricity but now he wasn't so sure. However, that had only been once and with Natalia it had occurred each time they touched. He would have to look into this more.

When he was done pretending to read the scroll in his hand he stood. "Ms. Rook," he suddenly said.

"Yes, Master?" Natalia responded, turning.

"What is the next step in the potion you are brewing?" Severus asked.

"Harvesting the fluxweed. I plan on doing that tonight under the full moon," Natalia explained.

"Very well. When you have finished with the fluxweed you may return here so you can add it while it still has the potent magical properties of being freshly picked," Severus told her.

In reality, he couldn't care less about the fluxweed. He was becoming used to her presence in his life and finding that he quite enjoyed her being around. He found himself wanting to be in her presence more often than not. She made him feel… content… at peace, when she was around. Not that he would ever admit this to her. He refused to put himself in the position of being rejected and hurt as he had with Lily. He had promised himself this years ago.

Natalia gathered all of her things up. "Is there anything else you need me to do while I'm here, Master?" she asked.

"No, Ms. Rook. You are free to go. I will see you after you collect the fluxweed tonight," Severus hurriedly replied.

Natalia nodded and left the dungeons. There was still a few hours before dark. Natalia figured she would head to The Leaky Caldron and grab some food before she collected the fluxweed. She was starving. Helping the students, making potions and grading papers made her so busy she hadn't even realized that she had skipped lunch and missed most of the dinner. She ordered herself a meal and ate in silence, lost in her own, deep thoughts.

When she finished her meal, she paid Tom and then left. She was feeling rather sated. She apparated home to feed her familiar and get cleaned up. She fed her hungry little cat it's favorite food and jumped into the shower. After getting a shower she headed back to Hogwarts Grounds. Standing on the Grand Hill she whispered _Lumos_ so she could identify the weed correctly and didn't end up going back to Master Snape with a few handfuls of grass. How embarrassing would that be? Her cheeks flushed at the very thought.

Natalia looked at the ground while wandering the hill. She saw a lot of fluxweed but a majority of it had been trampled from people apparating in and out on the hill. She was just about to give up when she spotted a whole section of the weed she had somehow missed. This fluxweed was healthy and not trampled. She walked over to that area of the hill and artfully picked about twenty plants, being sure to keep the roots attached. Natalia figured if she had too much she could give Pomona a few plants to grow in her greenhouses for the students to study.

When she thought that she had enough to do what she needed, she walked back to the potions classroom. With it being so late, she knocked on the door. A bellowed out _enter_ was her answer and she did so. She went directly to her brewing area and after cleaning the roots of all dirt, placed the last ingredient on the table. "Should I start the brew now Master?" she asked simply. He nodded, reading over an essay he hadn't gotten to earlier that day. While he did that, she began.

She started by filling her pristine copper cauldron with water and lit a fire to burn low. She then got 3 measures of scruples from the fluxweed and added that to the water. The liquid started to shimmer almost immediately as the magic from the moon was being extracted from the weed. She let that stew for 5 minutes before she added two bundles of knotgrass and then stirred it three times, clockwise. Once that was done, she waved her wand over the cauldron and put a stasis and timer charm over the brewing potion as it cooked for an hour.

During the hour wait, Natalia was reading up on some healing potions that she wanted to try in her free time. She also read on some muggle ways to bandage, clean and heals wounds in a hurry. She thought that may be useful if she was indeed going to help in this Order of the Phoenix that the Headmaster had talked about. He seemed adamant about needing a healer, and she wanted to help as much as she could. Even if it was just to fight against Death Eaters and not He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named himself. Muggle ways of healing could be useful in cases where members were not able to use magic openly.

After a bit, seeing as she had about 5 minutes left on her magical timer before she needed to do the next step, she started prepping more. She added two scoops of the slightly drier lacewing flies to a mortar and crushed them into a smooth paste. When she was done with that, it was time to continue the brewing. She added four leeches to the now bubbling cauldron, then added two measures of the pasty lacewing flies. She turned up the heat slightly for about 30 seconds to get the new ingredients incorporated into the brew.

When the time was up, she added three measures of the boomslang skin, followed by one measure of bicorn horn which she had already crushed into a powder. She turned up the heat with a silent spell and heated the cauldron for a quick 20 seconds. She set another stasis and tempus charm on the cauldron and started to clean up a bit. She still had some work to do, but for now, the current polyjuice brew needed to cook and set for 18 hours. She looked up at Severus when she was done cleaning up the ingredients she no longer needed and waited patiently. Severus was reading a book and was engrossed so much so that she had to clear her throat twice to get his attention.

He looked up quickly, and seeing that she was standing before him, nearly at attention, he looked behind her towards her cauldron. "Do you need assistance, ?" he asked silkily.

She just shook her head. "No, master. We have come to a point where it needs to brew for the 18 hours before we can continue. I was just wanting to let you know so that we could move to something else or head to bed. To our own beds, I mean." She blushed at her slip and looked towards the ground. Severus smirked a moment before he heard his classroom door open. He stood when he saw the Headmaster walk in.

"Albus. What do I owe this interruption to?" he asked, slightly annoyed. His old friend always had the worst timing to come into a room.

"Severus, my boy! I am sorry to interrupt. I was hoping to catch Ms. Rook before she left to go home for the day. While I have you both here, I suppose it would behoove me to bring this up to the both of you."

Severus just scowled. "What is it then, Albus?"

Dumbledore smiled, then looked to Natalia, whose quizzical face was obviously confused. "Ms. Rook. I would like to offer you your own private chambers here, in the castle. I think that it would be most beneficial to your apprenticeship as you wouldn't have to commute so much, as well as, to be honest, it is a bit selfish of me, But I was hoping we could talk more of the Order and see where you stood on that. If you accepted, this would be a safe place for you to live. Along with that lovely feline familiar."

Natalia looks shocked between the two men. Not knowing what to say, she just looked frazzled and started staring at the floor. "Urmh."

"Ah. I'm sorry my dear girl. I caught you by surprise. I apologize. I just thought that it would be convenient and safer for you here. You could decorate the room as you pleased, you would get your own passworded portrait, and a house elf would be assigned to help you as you needed it. If you so wished, of course," Dumbledore explained.

Severus looked at him suspiciously. Never in his history of knowing the headmaster has he invited a non-staff to live inside the castle walls unless they were the spouse of the staff. It was unheard of. Severus looked over to Natalia. "Speak girl. You were not struck dumb in the few moments since the headmaster's arrival, were you?"

That seemed to knock Natalia out of her own thoughts and she smiled shyly up at the headmaster. "Thank you for your offer, Headmaster. I will accept. When shall I move my things over?" she asked quietly, casting a side glance at Severus to see how he reacted with her answer. His face was unreadable. She looked back to Dumbledore.

"You can start moving your belongings later tonight if you wish. That way it will not interfere with your work with Severus, here. I know his time is in high demand," Dumbledore said with a smile and a happy twinkle in his eyes. Natalia nodded and looked to Severus again.

"If it pleases you, master? The potion needs to stew for 17 more hours. I could get my belongings and come back and still rest in time for tomorrow's first class," she said quickly, suddenly excited.

She always felt more at home at the castle then anywhere else. When her mother died in Natalia's 7th year at Hogwarts, she felt very alone. Her father was never in the picture and she didn't have any aunts or uncles that she knew of. Since she was of age when she graduated, she moved into a small flat near Diagon Alley and immediately started in St. Mungo's as an intern there. She earned money by doing the private orders of potions after a year and she saved the rest of her modest inheritance. Now that she had a chance to come back, she was suddenly feeling nostalgic and excited. She sincerely hoped that Severus would agree.

Severus was just scowling. He had a feeling that this offer for her to stay at the school was a bit more than just convenience, but he shrugged and said, "Very well. I cannot argue that it would be more convenient and less commute back and forth for lessons. Though, Albus, where will she be staying?"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled again. "Why, Severus. She will stay in the dungeons, near her old Common Room. We can either give her a portrait or let her have the same entrance option as the common room if it pleases her," he said turning back to Natalia. She giggled at the option. The way into Hufflepuff's common room was through tapping a certain barrel near the kitchens a certain number of times. If you hit the wrong barrel, or you tapped the wrong number of times, you were magically drenched with vinegar. It was the only house that had a magical defense to intruders besides a portrait refusing someone entry.

Natalia smiled giddily thinking of her options. "I think a portrait would be fine, Headmaster. Just one that requires a password if you don't mind. I do enjoy my privacy."

"Of course, my girl. You are similar to Severus in that respect. Now then, I will get that prepared for you as you pack. Severus, since she will also be in the Dungeons, does that work for you?" Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling overtime. It was almost like stars were in his pupils making them shimmer and shine in mischief. Severus frowned but nodded.

"It is fine, Albus. Thank you. I am sure Ms. Rook is very grateful." Natalia suddenly snapped her attention to them again. She was lost in thought on how to get all of her things packed. She didn't have much, but there were some things of her mother's that she wanted to make sure that she brought. She looked up at the Headmaster and smiled.

"Yes, sir. I am extremely grateful. Thank you so much for this opportunity."

Dumbledore nodded his head and snapped his fingers. With a small pop, a female house elf appeared. She had exceptionally long batlike ears, giant, shiny green eyes, and a petite frame. She had on a miraculously clean outfit for being a house elf which consisted of a little elf sized skirt and blouse. She bowed when she spotted Dumbledore. "Master Dumbledore sir called for Gabby, sir. What can Gabby do for Master Dumbledore, sir?" the house elf rambled.

"Gabby, this is Ms. Rook. She is going to be living here from now on. I would very much like it if you could attend to all of her needs while she is here at Hogwarts," Dumbledore told the elf.

"Of course, master Dumbledore, sir. It would please Gabby very much to serve Mistress Rook, sir." The house elf bowed again only this time directed at Natalia.

"As I understand it Gabby, Ms. Rook is in need of assistance. She will be packing her belongings to move over to a room by the Hufflepuff common room. Would it please you to assist her?" He asked Gabby with that suspicious twinkle in his eyes.

"Oh, Master Dumbledore, Sir." Gabby gushed. "It would give Gabby no higher pleasure than to helps Mistress Rook move to Hogwarts, sir."

"So be it." Dumbledore smiled down at the little elf. A soft _pop_ and the house elf was gone. He turned to Natalia. "Ms. Rook, I believe you are familiar with house elves since you did intern at St. Mungo's, but may I remind you that all you have to do is snap your fingers or call Gabby's name and she will appear anywhere you are to assist you. However, I do expect you to treat her with kindness," he said holding up a hand to stop her before she could protest.

"I don't believe you would treat her with an ill will but it is necessary that I say this as some of our house elves previous owners were not as kind," Dumbledore explained. "We at Hogwarts treat our house elves with kindness and do not dole out punishments willy nilly. Should you feel it necessary that Gabby be punished for wrongdoing I would appreciate it if you came to me first," Dumbledore said with a very serious look on his face.

Natalia nodded at the headmaster. "I would never dream of punishing a living creature for making a mistake, sir. I will treat her with all the kindness I can," Natalia told the headmaster in all seriousness.

He nodded back to her. "Very good. In that case, she is all yours. When she is not helping you, she will still be working at Hogwarts, but otherwise, she will help whenever she can. With that taken care of, I will let you be and we can talk more tomorrow when you have time. There is much to discuss." With that, he smiled kindly, turned and made his way out of the room.

Natalia looked frozen for a moment not sure what to do from there.

"Gabby is probably at your cottage now, Ms. Rook. You may want to go see that she packs everything as you want it. I will see you in the morning."

Natalia nodded and said "Yes, master. Until tomorrow. Good night." With that, she too left and Severus was left to his own thoughts. He went to his personal chambers and got ready for bed. As it was getting late, he ordered food while he showered and it was on his bedside table under a stasis charm when he got out. He ate, grabbed a book, laid in bed and read until he was tired enough to sleep.

Instead of getting tired to sleep though, all he could think of was his apprentice. Dumbledore just _had_ to have let her come to the castle to live. She would be under the same roof as him. Nearly neighbors as the dungeons where the potions classroom was were almost directly next to the kitchens where her room would be nearby. A short walk and he would be at her door. A quick knock and he could be in her room. A few words and she would be in his arms. Her lips on his, sighing happily at the warmth of his body against hers as they lay together in bed…

Severus shook himself out of his daydream and fidgeted uncomfortably at a certain dilemma. He growled out in frustration and went to his bathroom to take a cold shower. He didn't think he would be going to bed anytime soon at all.

/

It wasn't long after Natalia bid Master Snape good night that she was within the apparating zone. She quickly apparated back to her flat. She was so preoccupied with her thought of how everything should be packed and how long it was going to take her to clean the place that she almost missed the fact that her flat was nearly empty. The small flat was spotless. Dust and cobwebs in the corners were gone, dust bunnies from under her bed had disappeared. Any furniture that wouldn't be going with her to Hogwarts was covered carefully with sheets to protect it while she was away. Everything was spotless and Natalia was amazed.

"Gabby really has outdone herself," Natalia murmured to herself. She was a little irritated that everything had been done for her as there were certain things that she didn't want to be misplaced but she couldn't fault the little elf for following what she was sure were Dumbledore's orders. Natalia took a quick walk through her flat and seeing that everything was spotless, and there really was nothing left for her to do here, apparated to the grand hill.

Once inside the castle, she spotted Dumbledore waiting for her. Natalia walked up to him, noting that he was smiling. "Done packing so soon, ?" he asked innocently.

"As Gabby has packed nearly my entire cottage, I would say so." Natalia laughed.

Dumbledore chuckled with his eyes twinkling. "Let me show you to your room. We need to set the portrait password to your liking," he told her.

"Of course, headmaster," Natalia replied, following after him. Once they had reached the Hufflepuff common room entrance, they took a quick left and they stood before a large portrait of a petite woman wearing healer robes. The background of the painting was what looked like an office. There was a cozy chair behind a large desk which was cluttered with miscellaneous objects. A warm looking fire was going in the fireplace just beyond the desk.

"Natalia, meet Healer Gladys. She was an exceptional healer in her time," Dumbledore said as he introduced her to Healer Gladys. "Now for setting the password you need to think of a password that you would like and hold that thought in your mind, then you need to take your wand, tap the portrait three times, and say _Password Protectus_," the headmaster explained.

Natalia nodded. She tried thinking like a student to make sure she picked something a student wouldn't easily guess. But then only thought that came to mind was Severus Snape. So, she decided to use that as her password. Before she could set her password however Headmaster Dumbledore interrupted her.

"Ms. Rook. It is time I take my leave. I still have many important things to do before tomorrow," and with that, he quickly took his leave. Natalia was relieved that he had left because she really hadn't wanted to explain her choice of password to him. Holding the thought Severus Snape in her mind she tapped the portrait three times as she had been directed, she then muttered the spell she'd been told. "_Password Protectus"_ The portrait then began to glow a soft gold and then it faded away.

"Password?" Healer Gladys asked.

"Severus Snape," Natalia told her quietly and with that, the portrait of Healer Gladys swung open to review an apartment style room. The living room area was yellow with black trim, the Hufflepuff house colors, with a comfortable looking chair by the fireplace. Her bookcase had been set in this room, already filled with her book collection, and a small table stood beside it. Natalia walked through to the first door and opened it. She gasped. Gabby had set everything up just the way her bedroom had been back at the cottage.

Even Freya was there, lying curled up on Natalia's bed taking a little cat nap. She looked around the room taking in the small differences here and there. The paint for one, was a soft royal purple, giving the space a more relaxed vibe than the light blue paint in her bedroom of the cottage had given. However, it wasn't until she looked at her mirrored dresser that she noticed the biggest difference. Laid out on the dresser were items she had gotten from her mother. Natalia walked over and gingerly touched each one. There was a total of three items; A locket that, when opened, had a picture of her mother and her inside it, her mother's favorite opal ring, and a diary.

Natalia picked up the locket and held it firmly in her hand, trying to draw any comfort from the bauble. She grabbed the diary as well and walked back into the living room, sat down into the armchair by the fire, and looked at the items in her hand. She took the locket, opened it and pressed it against the diary. The diary instantly opened as the locket was spelled to be the key. Inside, the diary had entries over her mother's life, but there were also letters upon letters from her mom. Upon seeing her mother's handwriting Natalia started to tear up. She missed her mother so much. Natalia absentmindedly ran her fingers over the diary page, feeling the indents where her mother had pressed her quill to the page. Feeling the need to hear her mom's voice she started to read the first page of the diary, As she read the diary, her mom's voice came to her mind hearing the words she had once written.

_My dearest Natalia,_ she read; her mother's voice speaking the words that she was reading into her mind.

* * *

**Another AN: **Hey, guys. I just wanted to be clear with you. Dumbledore doesn't think that Nat would hurt the lovely miss Gabby. It is just that he wanted to be clear that nothing bad would happen to the elves while they were in his care. They came from terrible homes, many of them beaten and abused for no reason at all besides spite. He just wanted to make sure that no matter what happened, that he was taking care of the elves in his care. Just thought I would clear that all up for you! See you next chapter.

**P.S.** Sorry for the cliffhanger. It was BeautiflDisastar's idea. I just happened to love it so I kept it!


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: **The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** Hey, there guys! I am so sorry for the long absence. I have been having some mental health issues and I just didn't have the motivation to edit, write, and post. I have taken time for some me time and just took care of what I needed to, nothing extra and I am feeling much better! So, without further ado, I hope you enjoy this chapter. It is the longest one yet at 5864 words and has a little twist. The beginning made me tear up a bit because I wish I had a mother that was this caring. *Shrug* Again, thank you all for commenting reviews, asking questions in Pms, and giving feedback! I appreciate it and use all your suggestions to get even better! Props again to my co-writer BeautiflDisastar for just being awesome! She helped me write this chapter! Again, I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

* * *

**This Chapter is Dedicated to** Xainte, Sandradee27, xXPinkyPieXx, xxx0DarkFaery0xxx, Pervychan1, Annewrnr, Mara41496, Tenshiichan, Dreambeliever13, and Mrs. VampDiva Belikov.

I would like to make a special mention to **Amarenima Redwood** for reviewing multiple times throughout the story! BeautiflDisastar and I really, really appreciate the feedback and good wishes. Thank you! You have been following this story since the first version. I hope my changes, though small so far, is worth the re-read. You're amazing, girl! Thank you!

* * *

**Chapter 10**

**_ 20/04/1982_**

_My dearest Natalia, you turned ten today. My little girl is all grown up. It seems like it was only yesterday when you were placed in my arms for the very first time. Tears of joy running down my face as you were crying bloody murder. I took that as a good sign. A sign that you were healthy even if you weren't happy. But that day, my dear girl, I swore to myself that I would make you happy. Your daddy was never in your life, but you never had a care in the world about that. You are mommy's little girl and that works for you just fine. I love you sweet pea. _

_ -Moma_

**_ 18/06/1983_**

_My precious girl. Don't grow up so fast. It seems that every time I blink you are a year older and I can't seem to catch up. Professor McGonagall came by to see me today. You have been accepted into Hogwarts! I am so proud of you, sweetheart. I can't wait to see you grow into a strong witch, just like your moma. Just don't do it too fast. I will miss you so much my little bug. I hope you will write to me, and that you won't forget me while you are at Hogwarts. You are my whole world, Natalia. I love you. _

_ -Moma_

**_ 09/06/1987_**

_Natalia. My dearest daughter. I am so proud of you! You got your O.W.L.S results today and you did so well! I can't believe school is almost over for you. Just two more years sweetheart and you can be a healer just like me! I know you can do great things because you have accomplished so much already and that is just what you do. I love you, my dearest Nat. _

_ -Moma_

**_ 25/03/1989_**

_To my beloved daughter. If you are reading this, this may be my last letter to you. I am so sorry for failing you, my lovely daughter. I put others before myself and now I am sick. It is a muggle sickness and St. Mungo's doesn't know how to help. They even brought in a muggle healer that is married to one of the admin staff at the hospital. He thinks that because I am a witch, the disease mutated, and muggle medicine can't help either. I have doomed myself, my darling. I have doomed myself to a life without you. And I have doomed you for a life without a mother. I am so sorry to have failed you. Please do not fret. I loved you with all of my being and I pray to Merlin that I raised you right so that you can continue to succeed after I am gone. You will do great things, Natalia. I know you will. Because you are my daughter and that is all you have ever done. Be great, my little bug. My whole world. My Natalia. I love you. _

_ -Moma_

* * *

Natalia was in tears by the end of reading the letters. Tears freely running down her face, she sniffled and wiped at her face. She missed her mother terribly. There wasn't a day that went by that she didn't think of her. In her last years of being alive, her mom started to teach her more about potions and charms. While Natalia did well at charms, she wasn't interested in potions because they made her hair smell and she had enough reasons to be made fun of without that. However, once her mother died, Natalia didn't care about how her hair smelled. She wanted to be like her mother, to make her proud. She studied more into potions and regretted not taking them more seriously before, while she was a student at Hogwarts. She could have spent so much more time with her mother if she had.

She sniffled again before closing the diary and locking it again. She went and put the locket back on the dresser in her room, changed into some pajamas and she went to lay on the bed. She curled up with the diary still in her arms and she fell asleep, dreaming of her mother being alive again.

/

Severus was starting to worry. It wasn't like his apprentice to be late. Quite the opposite actually, she was usually at least ten minutes early. Yet here it was, forty minutes past the time his apprentice should have been here. He hadn't gotten a message saying she would be late or couldn't make it.

He growled to himself and stood. He pushed past the doors of the dungeon, his robes billowing behind him. Storming past the Hufflepuff common room entrance, Severus took a left and stood in front of Healer Gladys' portrait. "Open," he told her. Healer Gladys nodded and swung open to reveal Natalia's living space.

Severus marched over to the door that he assumed was to her bedroom. He knocked a few times and when he didn't receive a reply, he entered. He glanced around Natalia's room noting that his apprentice was dead asleep, clutching what looked like a diary. She looked so peaceful that he didn't particularly want to wake her but they had things to accomplish today.

Severus walked over to his apprentice and lightly shook her. "Natalia," Severus said softly, as not to scare her. He watched as her eyelids began to flutter, a sign that she was waking up. Natalia sat up and rubbed her eyes clearing the sleepy haze from her mind. Lowering her hands she looked in the eyes of none other than Severus Snape.

"Master Snape!" Natalia exclaimed. "What are you doing here? What time is it? How did you get passed the portrait?" she asked.

"One thing at a time, I think," Severus said. "It is just about 10 am," he told her, "which brings us to why I'm here," he said. "You didn't show up on time and I didn't receive a message from you. I was… Concerned," Severus finished.

"As for how I got past the portrait, I don't need a password to get into your living space. With our bond, you being my apprentice and me as your potions master, I can enter anywhere you are except your private quarters. However seeing as you haven't warded your private quarters yet, I was able to enter your bedroom as well. Unlike your link with Gabby which allows her to enter anywhere you are, including your private quarters, our bond is limited.

"Our bond lets me get to you in a moment's notice if needed. If you were in danger, hurt, or I was genuinely worried for you, our bond would allow me to pass your wards, however, I could not enter your wards without one of those circumstances being presented," Severus explained. "If you could change into more appropriate clothing and meet me in the dungeons, we can continue this discussion and you can explain your tardiness," Severus called over his shoulder as he left through the portrait hole.

Natalia watched him disappear. Quickly getting out of bed and changing out of her pajamas into more appropriate work clothes, she hurriedly ran a brush through her hair and brushed her teeth completing her morning routine. Natalia hastily shoveled the breakfast that Gabby had left for her under a stasis charm. She made a mental note to do the warding of her bedroom to avoid more embarrassing situations in the future. When she was done eating, she practically ran to the dungeons.

Without bothering to knock as Severus was expecting her, she entered the potions classroom. Severus looked up when Natalia entered. " Well, as you are aware, my time for our lessons are limited. Would you care to explain your tardiness?" Severus asked grumpily.

Natalia hung her head. She felt terrible. "Well, sir. I had a long night. While I was moving, I found some items belonging to my mother and was bombarded with memories of her. I'm sorry, I won't be late again," Natalia explained. Severus' face softened when he heard of his apprentice's emotional night.

He felt guilty for being so hard on her. He smiled slightly at her and said, "It's alright Natalia. I know what it's like to miss someone you care about." A sudden look of angst passing of his face and just as briefly, it was gone, replaced with his normal stoic, stony expression. "Let us put this behind us and start our lesson with what time we have left," Severus said kindly.

"Of course, sir," Natalia said relieved that he was not angry with her. During the next few hours, since the Polyjuice Potion still wasn't finished brewing for the next step, they started brewing blood replenishing potions for the Hospital Wing. They worked together silently and efficiently, handing each other the necessary ingredients before the other could even ask. Severus found that he enjoyed the teamwork very much and was nearly irritated when a tempus charm went off to alert Natalia to go back to the Polyjuice Potion.

Severus nodded to her and motioned for her to go back to the more advanced potion while he finished the one they were working on. He immediately missed the companionship, but shrugged off his musings and let her do her work.

Natalia added an additional measure of the crushed lacewing flies paste and then stirred three times counter-clockwise. As that was the final step, she took the potion off of the fire and let it cool before getting a vial, filling it, and stoppering it before presenting it to Severus. The potion was thick and mud like in appearance while it still bubbled in the vial even though it was cooled. Severus took it, examined it, and nodded, making little notes.

"This looks perfect, Ms. Rook. Good job. I suppose now, we only need to test it."

Just at that moment, Albus Dumbledore walked into the potions classroom. His eyes twinkling as always. "Hello, Severus. Ms. Rook. How are we this afternoon? I hope all is well?"

Natalia brightened up at seeing the grandfatherly figure and waved. "Hello, Headmaster. Everything is fine. I just finished brewing some Polyjuice. We were just going to test it," she said happily. He smiled in response.

"Ah, then my timing couldn't be better. I volunteer to test it for you. I have always wondered what it would be like to walk in Severus' shoes!" he exclaimed with a mischievous grin. Severus frowned.

"I don't think that is wise, Albus. The students would get the wrong impression of seeing a happy potions professor. You would ruin my reputation in minutes."

Dumbledore laughed. "Ah, my dear boy. That is part of the fun. Come on then, surrender some of that hair! Skip, skip!"

Severus nearly growled but obeyed. Quickly pulling out a long black strand of hair, he added it to the vial. It turned a deep blue color and the smell that permeated the room was minty. Dumbledore smiled. "Ah, Severus. You look much tastier than expected. Don't you agree, Ms. Rook?" Dumbledore asked looking at her. She blushed and stayed quiet. His eyes glistened mischievously and he downed the potion in an instant. They waited a moment and when nothing happened Natalia started to worry.

"Oh, no. I must hav-"

As she was speaking, Dumbledore's nose suddenly started to grow. It grew r in length and his beard shot back into his face. '_He certainly looked strange with no beard,'_ Natalia thought to herself, trying to contain a giggle. At that moment, the headmaster's long white hair rebounded back into his head and turned auburn, then brown, then finally black and hung to his shoulders. He shrank a couple of inches in height and his shoulders became broader. In just a few moments, Dumbledore was Severus' doppelganger and it was a peculiar sight.

Natalia could hardly contain her giggles as she saw the second smiling Severus in periwinkle robes with purple stars on them. It was such a difference from the normally stoic, stern professor, that she just couldn't help but laugh. Dumbledore summoned himself a mirror and chuckled good-naturedly at his new looks.

"I would say this is a slamming success, Severus. Wouldn't you? Your apprentice has quite the skill with Polyjuice Potion. Since no one turned into a cat, I would say this is the best version that has been brewed in this castle, and Horace Slughorn used to make Polyjuice quite often within these walls. Very good job, Ms. Rook. You should be proud."

Natalia blushed at the praises from her former headmaster and looked to her Potions Master. He nodded silently, agreeing with his old friend, but not wanting to go too overboard. She blushed again and looked away, fidgeting slightly.

"Well now. I suppose the next test is to see how long this lasts. I just cannot wait until dinner to confuse all the other professors. Severus, I may just have to borrow a set of your professor's robes to get fully into character. Wouldn't want to ruin your reputation too quickly. How fun!" the old man exclaimed.

Natalia giggled again and her eyes lit up in mirth. Severus caught her eye and smiled at her, giving her another nod of approval. He was proud of her, though he shouldn't have been surprised. She had told him that she had done this before, he just didn't think it was to this level of excellence.

"Well, my dear girl. I originally came down here to talk to you more about the Order, but I think I may come back once I am myself again. It may be difficult for you to talk to me while I am Severus. How about this weekend? Would that work for you?"

Natalia nodded, still trying to become victorious over controlling her giggles. She was having a hard time of it. "Yes, sir. That sounds- per-_giggle-_perfect."

Dumbledore smiled and nodded. "Very well then. See you all at dinner. 'Til then!" With that, he left as quickly as he came in. Natalia took a moment to compose herself before turning straight ahead and looked at her potions master. He appraised her. Her face was flushed from the laughter and her eyes were bright with mirth. She looked quite beautiful at that moment and all Severus wanted to do was pull her into his arms and hold her. He wanted to feel that shock of electricity shoot through him, making him feel more alive than he had since Lily died.

Natalia started to squirm under his intent gaze and he shook himself out of his reverie.

"Very good, Ms. Rook. Another Outstanding potion. I suppose all we wait for now is for Albus to report how long it lasted. If it is as good a quality as I think, it may last the full 12 hours. I am sure he will have all too much fun tarnishing my name, but I suppose it is for a good cause."

"Thank you, sir," Natalia replied. She smiled radiantly at him and tugged gently on her french braid. A nervous tick she did when she was nervous, he remembered.

"So now that that assignment is complete sir, what are we going to work on?" she asked.

Severus thought for a moment. "Well, Ms. Rook. I was thinking. You have been working so hard on the Polyjuice Potion, and you did such a good job, I was thinking perhaps you would like a short break. We are already ahead of schedule for your apprenticeship because of your expedient work, so you have the time. Perhaps you could go to visit your mother. Since you had such a hard time seeing her belongings, maybe giving her a visit would cure the homesickness you seem to have," Severus suggested kindly.

Natalia frowned, tears immediately starting to brim her eyes at the mention of her mother. "Thank you, sir. But that would be impossible."

Severus scowled. He had said the wrong thing. Was her mother dead? '_You fool Severus! Why didn't you think of that?' _he chastised himself mentally.

"Oh, Ms. Rook. I am sorry. I didn't think…" Severus trailed off. She just waved her hand to dismiss his apologies.

"It's alright, sir. She died shortly before I graduated, so it has been about five years. But it doesn't get any easier. Especially since she was cremated. There is no grave to visit. And I-I just miss her sometimes. She was the be- best mom a girl could ask for!" she exclaimed before bursting into tears. She went to go sit at the nearest desk and put her face in her hands, trying to hide from him.

Severus scowled again at his foolishness to assume that Natalia's family was alive and well. She was too young to have so much pain and heartbreak in her life. Severus felt for the girl. Having lost his drunken father wasn't much of a loss, but his mother did all that she could and when she died, a piece of Severus went with her. He went and kneeled beside her, leaning against the desk.

"Ms. Rook. I am truly sorry for your loss. You are a very talented young woman and I am certain that your mother would be very proud of you."

Natalia looked up from behind her hands and smiled tearfully at him. Little tear droplets were hanging heavily onto her eyelashes, while the small stream of tears was still running down her cheeks. Severus hesitantly went to wipe them away, the pad of his thumb slowly sliding over her cheekbones, erasing away any trace of tears. She gasped in shock at the jolt she felt from his touch. She looked deeply into his dark eyes and nibbled her bottom lip. Yet another nervous tick. That damn bottom lip that he wanted to bite and worry gently between his teeth.

Natalia saw the heat in his eyes and she gasped, releasing her lip, and that is when Severus leaned forward and gently placed his lips on hers. It was just a feather touch of a kiss, and the shock that ran through them both made them gasp, pulling apart. Natalia stood suddenly, and without a word, rushed from the room.

Severus swore under his breath and berated himself. '_You fool. You have just ruined everything. She won't want to be your apprentice anymore after that. That was inappropriate. You are nearly 15 years older than her, Severus, you old coot! What were you thinking?'_

He wasn't thinking. Not really. His only thought was the need to comfort her. To make her stop crying. And to taste her lips. Those lips that have been taunting him since the first day at the Three Broomsticks. Those red lips that were worried between straight white teeth at the Yule Ball, and whenever she was particularly focused on certain ingredient or instruction for a brew. They looked so soft, and Severus, the fool that he is, fell for the temptation and he was sure that his apprentice lost all respect for him because of his… momentary weakness.

'_But that shock… That jolt when I kissed her.'_ He thought. '_That is nothing like I have ever felt… I have to go to her.' _With a sweep of his robes, he nearly ran out of his classroom, following behind Natalia. He went up the short expanse of stairs to just make a quick left turn and go back down another set that led to the kitchens of the castle. Once there, he went to the portrait of the Healer. "Open," he commanded. Healer Gladys just frowned but nodded and opened. He strode into the living room of Natalia's chambers and stood there, not quite sure what to do next.

He softly cleared his throat and called out. "Ms. Rook? May I talk to you?"

He heard the soft squeal from the other room and frowned. Was she scared of him now? Just as he was about to leave, the bedroom door creaked open and Natalia slowly stepped out, looking towards the floor. Severus' heart nearly broke at the sight of the girl. She had been crying more since she had left, and he wasn't sure that it was still about her mother.

"Ms. Rook. Please excuse my behavior a few minutes ago. It was uncalled for and ungentlemanly. I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable…" Severus trailed off, looking at the girl, searching for any semblance that she wasn't afraid of him.

When she looked up, her eyes were red and her cheeks tear-stained. She sniffled gently and rubbed her eyes. She looked right at him and stood up straight. As confidently as she could in that state, she said, "I think after that, you could at least call me Natalia."

It was such a simple statement, but one that brought great relief to Severus. He visibly relaxed, his too straight stature loosened up as a sigh of relief left him. He hadn't realized that he was holding his breath until that moment and he frowned.

"Natalia then… I am sorry if I overstepped. I wasn't thinking clearly and… I just wanted to comfort you. I am not very good at that, as you saw…" He trailed off. He fidgeted under her unwavering gaze. She looked to be studying him, memorizing details with such scrutiny, it made Severus squirm, but he allowed it for what he put her through.

He started holding his breath again unknowingly as she slowly walked up to him. She looked at him, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration as she looked at his face. His features suddenly got self-conscious as she looked at him, so simply, with no judgment in her eyes. He was getting jittery the closer she got. When she was close enough where he could smell her orange and lilac shampoo, he fidgeted more, not sure what to do in this situation.

"Kiss me again, professor," she commanded softly. He started in surprise.

"What?" he asked incredulously.

"Kiss me again. Please? I want to see what it is like when it isn't so… wet." She looked so innocent as she said this. Her eyelashes were still a bit wet from the tears, but her face was determined as she said this and Severus felt he had to comply. He simply nodded, gently placed his hand on her cheek, felt that small shock as he expected, and leaning down to meet her, touched his lips to hers.

He kissed her a bit more soundly this time, pressing closer to her as she gently wrapped her arms around his neck, having to stand on her tiptoes to do so. He growled softly from feeling her body against his. She gasped slightly from the growl and Severus gently probed her lips with his tongue, seeing how she would react. She tentatively opened her mouth and flicked her tongue against his, making him moan softly at the taste of her. She got goosebumps from the noises that came from him and she shivered. That made him break the kiss. Still holding onto her and breathing slightly harder than what was expected, he looked at her carefully to make sure he didn't overdo it.

Her face was red as she blushed. The color spread to her neck and ears quickly and Severus smirked confidently. He may not have had many girlfriends while he was a student, but he had many women during and after the first war. He was always complimented for his skills as a kisser, among other things that he just couldn't think about right then. He just looked at her as she tried to calm herself.

"Are you alright Ms.- Uh, Natalia?" Severus asked quietly, his cheek slightly flushed from the encounter. She looked up at him shyly, goosebumps still on her arms. She nodded.

"I am fine, sir. Thank you."

"It's Severus," he replied quietly. She looked at him in question. "If you want me to call you Natalia, then call me Severus. At least while it is just the two of us. You are right, it doesn't feel so formal now, so why pretend? If you wish to continue being my apprentice, there will still be responsibilities. However, I would like it to be a … fun experience, so you need not be so formal when it is just us. If others are present I expect propriety overall. Do you agree?" he asked, hopeful.

Natalia nodded. "I agree. Thank you… Severus." She smiled shyly at him and blushed, looking away. It was definitely something she would have to get used to. First the kiss, and then calling him by his given name. So much has happened so fast. This apprenticeship certainly was more exciting than she ever thought possible.

Severus nodded, content that she hadn't turned him down and refused to come back as his apprentice. He didn't know what he would do if that were to happen. He had become quite accustomed to having her around, even if they were just silently reading coursework from the students. It was always more enjoyable than being alone, yet Severus hadn't noticed until he about lost that companionship.

Natalia cleared her throat softly and it brought Severus back to the present. "Right then… I suppose I will go now. Goodnight to you, Natalia. And please, take what I said seriously. I do wish for you to take a break. Do what you must. I will be here when you return."

Natalia graced him with one of her brilliant smiles and she nodded. "Thank you, Severus. I will keep that in mind. Goodnight." Severus nodded in answer, turned and left the room. As soon as the portrait closed, he ran his fingers through his hair in a frustrated manner. What had he just gotten himself into? He needed to look into those shocks of electricity that he kept feeling with Natalia… but where could he find information on something he had heard of once. He scowled and went back to his chambers.

/

Albus Dumbledore wasn't a man who liked to be serious. That was half the reason he turned down the position for Minister of Magic. He'd had the political support backing if he would have wanted to pursue it, sure, but it just wasn't for him. So, he mused while walking towards the dungeons, taking the headmaster position had been a practical choice. He could teach the students and still have the freedom to have his fun.

Stopping in front of Severus' door, he knocked. Once again, without waiting for an answer he waltzed right in. Severus scowled when he saw him. "Still parading about, pretending to be me and ruining my reputation, I see," Severus huffed.

"Ahh, my boy, you mustn't deny an old man his simple pleasures in life," Dumbledore said smiling. "Actually, I came to see about borrowing a set of your robes for dinner tonight. After all, my purple robes just don't suit you at all." Dumbledore chuckled.

Severus sighed. "I don't suppose I have much of a choice in this matter." Walking over to his bureau he pulled out a pair of black teaching robes. "I would like to know how you explained me wearing your robes today though, Albus." He handed the robes to the headmaster, who smiled in response. "I told everyone brave enough to ask that you had lost a bet with me and this was the payment. Since you 'made an unbreakable vow' you were forced to wear my robes." Severus just brought his fingers and pressed them along the bridge of his nose as he sighed

"I do expect them back at some point, Albus," Severus told the meddling old man.

"Of course," Dumbledore replied absentmindedly, already thinking about what shenanigans he could get into as Severus at dinner that night. "I expect to see you at dinner tonight and not hiding in your dungeons. After all, it won't be any fun if you don't make an appearance, Severus," Dumbledore said commandingly.

Severus sighed again. "Who am I to stand on the way of fun, Albus." Dumbledore smiled at his statement.

"Till dinner then," Dumbledore replied leaving Severus to go back to what he was previously doing. As soon as the door closed behind the headmaster, Severus put his face in his hands and groaned. _Why couldn't the old man annoy someone else for a change? It is like Dumbledore takes personal pleasure in annoying me as much as possible. _Severus thought.

He still had a few hours until dinner at least. So, he set upon cleaning his quarters, as he didn't like the house elves in his chambers. He decided cleaning would keep him busy and his thoughts off of Ms. - Natalia - he quickly corrected himself. He finished cleaning the rooms rather quickly seeing as he was a wizard and could use cleaning spells.

He thought upon what Dumbledore could possibly do to humiliate him, unintentionally, of course. Severus had a sudden idea but shot it down immediately. He had thought he could make a potion that would change his hair color for a few hours. However, Dumbledore would give him that look and he would feel bad about doing so. Severus resigned himself to being the school entertainment for the evening. Besides, he had noticed how Natalia's eyes had lit up at the idea. He sighed. '_As long as it makes her happy,'_ he thought.

Severus decided to go talk with the headmaster before dinner. He walked out of the dungeons and headed towards the stone gargoyle. He said the password "Acid Pops" and walked onto the spiral staircase. When he reached the headmaster's door he knocked. "Come in," was the reply. Upon seeing it was Severus, Dumbledore smiled.

"What can I do for you, my boy?"

"Well, I was thinking that since the polyjuice potion doesn't change your voice I could do your before dinner speech." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled and he clapped his hands.

"Wonderful!" Dumbledore exclaimed. They talked in hushed tones and formed a plan.

At dinner time, Severus walked into the Great Hall. The students were all waiting expectantly to be allowed to eat. Walking up to the headmaster's podium, he waited for the noise to hush down. Once it did, Severus cleared his voice and said. "The headmaster is unavailable for the moment but he did say for me to tell you to have a wonderful dinner."

At that exact moment, as planned, the voice of Albus Dumbledore said, "Nonsense, my boy!" The student's heads whipped around to find the headmaster. But instead of the headmaster, they found another Severus Snape. Pandemonium was instantaneous. Some students gasped, others started whispering to the person next to them and Ronald Weasley poked Harry and said "Great, now there's two of the greasy git." Harry laughed, Hermione frowned and chastised the redhead.

"Ronald, don't be rude. He's still a Hogwarts professor regardless of yours and Harry's feelings towards him."

Even the teachers were a tad confused. Sybill Trelawney had gasped and spouted off some wonky crap to do with a prophecy about two Severus Snapes and Hagrid had even yelled at Severus. "WHAT HAVE YA DONE WIT DUMBLEDORE!" he bellowed.

Severus just shook his head and chuckled. A sound which hushed the entire student body into shock. There was a small giggle from the far end of the staff table where Natalia sat next to Poppy. As an apprentice to a professor, she was able to sit with them for meals. She quieted and blushed a deep red when all of the students turned to look at her. She cringed and hid behind her hair. Dumbledore spoke again, taking attention from her.

"I'm not quite sure what you're talking about Hagrid. I'm feeling in tip-top shape. I feel better than I have in years! I have a kick to my step and a mean craving for roast beef," he said with a grin on his face. The students were flummoxed as to what was happening. Dumbledore went up to his podium and stood next to his twin. "I suppose that is thanks to this fellow. Do you like roast beef, Severus?" Dumbledore asked playfully.

The real Severus just shrugged, playing it off. At that moment mountains of roast beef crowded the tables of the Houses in the Great Hall. The students started murmuring in excitement. Mashed potatoes, gravy, stewed vegetables, dinner rolls, and drinks appeared next.

"In the spirit of fun and frivolity, enjoy this special feast in recognition of Ms. Rook's splendid Polyjuice Potion. I tested it personally and what a splendid result! Dig in!" Dumbledore exclaimed.

The students clapped politely and in excitement as Natalia blushed. Professor Mad-Eye raised his flask to her and nodded his head in recognition. Poppy patted her on the back.

"I knew you would do well Natalia, my girl. This is just the beginning," she whispered to her before starting to eat. Natalia smiled proudly and as she was about to eat she caught her potion master's eye. He gave her a rare smile and nodded to her. She smiled back at him and went about her meal.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: **The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** Hey there. I will keep it short and sweet. I hope you all are enjoying the story! I added at least 1000 more words in this chapter, including a flashback, so enjoy! Any comment, concerns or questions are all welcome. Please feel free to pm me or just ask in the reviews! Thanks, guys!

* * *

**Dedicated:** This chapter is dedicated to Scarlett Raye, ssooo, PalmTiger, draconisnoire43, EffyinNeverland, nightworldangel, and the ever wonderful Amarenima Redwood. For being here before my long break and after. I appreciate all the support from you all! Thank you!

* * *

**Chapter 11**

During lunch in the great hall the next day, the students got to see exactly how Polyjuice Potion wore off. As the clock struck on the hour of 11:00 am, Dumbledore's elongated nose shrunk back to its normal size; his black hair grew in length and turned white; his beardless chin suddenly shot out a long, elegant, white beard; his coal-black eyes turned back into their original baby blue color and he shot up a few inches in height.

At the end of it, Dumbledore stood looking just like himself except in a borrowed pair of black teaching robes. Dumbledore laughed wholeheartedly, standing up to take the podium.

Addressing the student body he said, "This has been a wonderful experience. Not to mention most fun for me, and probably most embarrassing for Professor Snape. This should have been a great educational experience for all my wonderful knowledge-hungry students. As I'm sure you are aware, Polyjuice Potion usually only lasts a maximum of 12 hours, however, Ms. Rook's potion lasted an entire 16 hours! Congratulations are in order for Ms. Rook. So please, join me in applauding Professor Snape's lovely apprentice."

Dumbledore turned to face Natalia and started clapping his hands together, smiling serenely at her. Almost instantaneously the entire student body was joining him, applauding her success. Natalia's cheeks flushed with embarrassment at being put on the spot but also, with pride.

"Come now, Ms. Rook, stand up and take a bow," Severus said quietly in her ear. "Don't be modest." He was smiling cheekily as he said this.

Not having any other choice, Natalia stood, took a bow and hastily sat down as the applause died out. Dumbledore nodded his head at her in silent congratulations but also to remind her he would expect great things after their discussion about the Order this weekend. Natalia spent the rest of lunch pondering what Dumbledore would ask of her and what her responsibilities would be.

/

Pacing the floor of his chambers hours after his doppelganger resumed his own form, Severus growled and was becoming agitated. Ever since he gave money to Natalia for potions ingredients and they touched_,_ he had read book after book on electrical shocks; magical and mundane and was still coming up completely empty-handed. Severus growled again. "Fine, I'll go talk to Albus then," he said, talking to himself.

Walking towards the dungeon doors, pushing them open and exiting the dungeons, he headed down the corridors towards the headmaster's office, stopping in front of the stone gargoyles again. Spouting out the password of the week, "Acid Pops", Severus watched as the stone gargoyles jumped out of the way to allow his entry onto the spiral staircase. Severus thought the moving staircase was an impractical object. He felt it would be faster to just walk instead of waiting for the spiral to stop.

Standing in front of the headmaster's door for what seemed like the hundredth time this week, he raised his left hand and knocked raptly. Dumbledore's reply was immediate.

"Enter, friend or foe."

Severus rolled his eyes, but replied, "Friend, as always."

Entering the small and cluttered office, Severus plopped himself down on one of Dumbledore's cushy armchairs that were placed in front of his desk. He sighed deeply. A noise which did not go unnoticed by the headmaster. "Severus, my boy, is something bothering you?" Dumbledore asked, his periwinkle eyes boring into Severus' coal-black eyes with obvious concern.

"I'm doing some personal research and yet, what should be an easy question to answer is an answer that is eluding me." Severus frowned.

Dumbledore suddenly looked interested. "Personal research? Care to elaborate, Severus?" Dumbledore asked his old friend. Dumbledore was interested but he was also worried. It was not often Severus came to him for advice. He only came to him when he was in over his head or when something was bothering him. Dumbledore hoped it was the latter of the two.

Severus put his face in his hands and groaned. "I suppose for you to understand I have to start at the beginning."

"Most logical assumption, Severus," Dumbledore chuckled.

"Well, it all started when Natalia, -err, Ms. Rook, and I accidentally touched as I gave her a coin purse to buy some supplies. I felt a shock and I'm sure she did too if her reaction was any indication. At first, I shrugged it off as a static shock, even though we were in the dungeons. Every time she and I touch, it occurs, but it gets stronger each time," Severus started explaining.

"_AndwhenIkissedherithappenedagainonlythistimethestrongestithaseverhappened,_" Severus mumbled so quickly Dumbledore barely understood.

"Let me get this straight, Severus," Dumbledore said smiling. "You have been being shocked every time you and Ms. Rook touch and when you _**kissed**_ her, it was the strongest yet?" Dumbledore finished, emphasizing 'kissed' when he said it.

"Exactly," Severus said.

"Hmm, let me think. I believe I've heard of this once before," Dumbledore told Severus.

"You have?" Severus asked, daring to be hopeful.

"Yes, dear boy. Once before with a young couple. You went to school with them, actually. Lily Evans and James Potter," Dumbledore told him. "In fact, it is a very rare thing to occur. You are quite fortunate," Dumbledore continued.

"Fortunate to have what?" Severus asked frustration laced in his voice.

"A soul bond; a very rare connection between two people who are meant to be soul mates. It explains the electrical shocks or magical shocks as they are actually defined. You see, when two such people touch, their magic links, one strand at a time. However, it is not a definite situation where the two have to be together. The bond will never complete unless the two people have intense feelings for each other... By intense, I mean they have to love each other unconditionally. For the link to form completely they have to freely admit it too, not only themselves but also to each other," Dumbledore explained.

Severus, who was looking quite green, asked, asked, "Magic ties itself together? "

Dumbledore chuckled again. "That would be the last thing I would worry myself about, dear boy. Magic ties itself together in a multitude of ways. Familiar ties, friendship, and the Unbreakable Vow are just a few examples. But, yes, if the bond completes, it will tie your magic together. You will be stronger together than ever apart. However, it also acts as a warning system. If one of you were hurt, it would alert the other and they could generally pinpoint your location. It also allows you to speak to each other mentally from a considerable distance if Legilimency and Occlumency are known proficiently. However, that is if, and _only if_ it completes. With it incomplete, you can carry on as you normally do."

Dumbledore looked at Severus intently and continued. "Just let me add this. Tying your magic is one of the most carnal and magical things you can do. The downside to this is once the connection completes and a union bond is cast over the two, the union bond can never be broken. In simple terms, if you married you could never divorce. Your magic wouldn't allow it. That is not to say that if one of you, heaven forbid, were to die, the other would as well. No, that's not how it works. If one of you died, the other would simply carry on with life. If you hadn't known about the link, you'd be none the wiser."

Taking a breath Dumbledore droned on. "However, if the connection completes, you would be bonded so strongly it would cancel out any pre-existing marriage links and there would be nothing to be done about it. The ministry would instantly have to recognize you as each other's, but it wouldn't be legal until the union bond was completed and you would gain something so special that you would never find it again in a million years. A soul mate," Dumbledore finished grandly.

Severus felt like he was going to be sick, pass out, or go crazy. He didn't know which, but perhaps he'd already gone crazy. A soul bond…with Natalia? That was insane. Impossible. Incomprehensible. This couldn't be happening. He had barely kissed her, and now it was all ruined. He couldn't love anyone but _**her**_. Lily. Lily was and will always be his one true love. He just couldn't seem to ever get passed his love for Lily. It's what drove everyone who tried to get close to him away at one point or another. They all had to compete with a dead woman and no one ever came close.

Severus knew what he had to do. He thanked the headmaster and returned to his private chambers to think. He would ignore this _soul link _as much as he could. He would treat Natalia like he always did. Nothing would change. Maybe she was the one fate made for him but he just couldn't see letting Lily go. Severus wouldn't treat Natalia like she did something wrong, however. No, this wasn't her fault.

It wasn't her fault that he was in love with a dead woman. That he had been since they were small children. Ever since that day that Severus went over the hill after an argument between Lily and her sniveling sister Petunia.

***Flashback***

_Severus was laying in the long grass looking up at the clouds when he heard two girls squealing with glee. He turned over on his stomach and army crawled closer to the top of the hill to look over. He saw the back yards of several higher middle-class homes in a small suburb. In one such yard, two girls were playing in their yard, smiling and enjoying their time together. Severus was immediately jealous, wishing he had a sibling he could play with and confide in. He decided to watch them, to see how siblings act around each other. They played peacefully for about ten minutes and just as Severus was getting bored of watching the muggle children, he saw the red-headed girl go to their cherry blossom tree and pluck an unflowered bud off the tree. _

"_Look Tuney! Look what I can do!" said the redhead. Her sister, 'Tuney' _apparently_, looked bored. _

"_I'm getting tired Lily. Let's just go inside!"_

"_It won't take long! Just look. But you got to promise not to tell Mum and Dad," the redhead replied in a whisper._

_This got Tuney's attention and she stood closer to her sister's side, preparing to watch whatever she was to do. Severus watched as close as he could. Suddenly, Severus watched in awe as the redhead focused, closing her eyes, and the bloom opened into a beautiful cherry blossom flower. He immediately knew 'Lily' just had to be a witch. Especially when her sister gave her reaction. _

"_What the bloody hell, Lily? How did you do that? Show me, __**NOW**__!"_

"_Shh, Tuney! Mum and Dad will hear you. I don't know how I do it. I just look at the bud, close my eyes and wish that it was a flower! Here, you try!" Lily went back to the tree and got her sister a bud of her own. Handing it to her with a smile she said, "You can do it, Tuney! I know you can!"_

_Tuney had listened to everything that Lily told her to do and with all her might she wished for the bud to become a flower. She opened her eyes and… nothing had happened. She growled in frustration and tried again. Again, nothing happened. She glared at her sister. "You're lying to me. What did you do to make it so this won't flower!?"_

_Lily looked hurt. "Nothing, Tuney! I swear! Just take a deep breath and try again! You can do it!" Tuney huffed but did as she was bid. And for the third time when she _opened _her eyes, nothing on the bud had changed. She growled. _

"_You little bitch! You're pranking me, making me look like a fool for laughs. I'm telling mum and dad!" With that harsh statement, Tuney went inside calling after her parents. Lily seemed to panic and started running up the hill. This made Severus panic since he didn't want to be caught spying on the two girls. He fell to the ground and tried to flatten himself as much as he could to the ground, letting the tall grass flow above him. He heard the huff of exertion of the girl getting over top the hill and he held his breath. Then suddenly, he felt a kick in his ribs and weight on top of him as a girl shouted out._

"Oomph_!" He quickly pushed the girl off of him and turned over. _

"_Are you alright?" he asked quietly._

_Lily looked up at him and at that moment he knew he was in love. Her beautiful green eyes were sparkling like emeralds, (Not that Severus knew what one of those looked like) her hair was glowing like fire in the sun's rays. Her freckles upon her cheeks looked like constellations. He shrunk back upon himself, not knowing what to do as he was terribly shy now. _

_She looked at him and the sudden change of seeing if she was alright and suddenly trying to hide from her. She frowned a bit. "I am fine, thank you. What were you doing hiding in the grass?" She looked at his vantage point and back at him. He gave her a guilty look. "Were you watching us? My sister and I? Did you see?"_

_He suddenly looked excited and nodded. "I sure did! You did magic! You're a witch!"_

_Lily looked confused. "Witches aren't real! They're just in stories. That's what my daddy says, and he would never lie to me."_

_Severus put up his hands up in surrender. "I wouldn't say he was a liar. But I know he is wrong. I am a wizard. I can do magic too." Lily looked skeptical and so, proudly, Severus showed Lily what he could do without his wand. Ever since that day, they were friends. _

Severus shook himself out of his reverie. He decided, then and there, that he would try to see where... _whatever_ this was they had, went, but he wasn't going to ruin the friendly relationship they had already. He wasn't going to push it. His affections for Natalia confused him and made him feel irrationally guilty due to Lily. He knew that he had done nothing to be guilty for. Lily had married James _bloody_ Potter, for Merlin's sake. He just didn't know what to think at that moment but what he did know was this; He had already lost Lily. He didn't want to lose Natalia as well. He enjoyed her companionship; her intelligence, and her mannerisms. He didn't want to lose something like that again. Why couldn't anything ever be easy? Why did everything have to be complicated?

Severus decided he needed to sleep. It was the eve of the weekend after all, and he had no classes in the morning. He was too confused and he didn't even know what to do about this. So, he made his way to his bed, downed a vial of dreamless sleep and laid down to fall into a deep sleep almost instantaneously.

/

The next morning Natalia found a note on her bedside table.

_Ms. Rook. Please join me for lunch today in my office. We can have a delightful spot of sherry while we have a little chat. The password is 'Acid Pops'. 1230pm_

_-A.P.W.B.D_

Natalia had been ready an hour before she needed to go see the headmaster, but she was so nervous she just wanted to get it over with already. She sat in an armchair in her living room, twiddling her thumbs until about twenty minutes before he was expecting her. She figured that by the time it would take her to get to his office, she would be about five to ten minutes early, just as she liked to be.

Just as she had estimated, she was early, but she knocked confidently on the thick oak door anyway. It opened silently, magically by itself. Dumbledore was nowhere to be seen, but it was time for their meeting so Natalia just stepped inside and stood patiently near the door.

"Professor Dumbledore? I'm here!" she called out. When still no answer came, she sighed dejectedly and went to take a seat. There was a faint chirp to her left and she looked up at it in surprise. A sickly looking phoenix was on its perch, seemingly stooping like an old man. Natalia had never before seen a phoenix in person before and she had to admit, they seemed pretty lackluster. Suddenly, in a flash of flames, the bird turned to ash.

Natalia squealed in surprise, covering her mouth. She heard a floorboard creaked behind her, so she quickly stood and turned and there was Dumbledore. She looked at him, then the ashes and looked so confused. "Headmaster. I am so sorry. He was just sitting there, and suddenly he just went…" She motioned with her hands a 'poofing' motion, feeling unworthy of actually describing what happened. She frowned and looked to the floor.

Dumbledore just smiled. "Not to worry, my girl. Fawkes does that for attention. He will be back soon. The magic of a phoenix. They burst into flame when it is time for them to die. Then they are reborn through the ashes."

Natalia frowned. "That is so sad."

Dumbledore just smiled. "Not at all, my girl. It just shows that even after a tragedy, one can come out stronger than ever." Natalia shrugged. "Now, to business. The Order of Phoenix." With a quick flick of his wrist, the door closed with a long creak and he went to sit. He motioned to an armchair that was opposite him and Natalia sat. "Have you thought more about my offer, Ms. Rook?" he asked, cutting to the chase.

She nodded. "I have, and I would like to help as much as I can. Just… what would I do?"

The headmaster smiled, his eyes glittering in excitement. "So much, my dear. Among brewing potions with Severus, there is a need for someone with a healing experience. The fact that you had interned at St. Mungo's is a monumental step for us. I have it on good authority that if you hadn't accepted the apprenticeship with Severus, that you would have been hired full-time very shortly. Your healing expertise could save a life, and that is very important to me. Also, I am sure you have heard of Harry Potter…" he trailed off.

She nodded in silent response. He continued. "Well, there may be more nefarious deeds going on than just a goblet acting up and spitting out his name. I need you to gather intel, watch over Harry and his friends, as well as some time in the future, you may be tasked to go out of the country for different reasons. The main requirement to be in the Order, Ms. Rook, is total and complete secrecy and discretion. What do you know of Occlumency and Legilimency?"

Dumbledore asked that question so quickly, Natalia took a second to answer, still trying to process everything else. "Um, well sir. Occlumency is the ability to shield one's mind from being broken into for lack of a better word. Some witches and wizards can delve into another's mind using Legilimency and can find a person's deepest secrets. Being able to use Occlumency makes your mind privy to someone attempting such a feat, and being able to push them out. It is very hard to learn, and can be quite strenuous," she explained.

The headmaster nodded. "Very good, Ms. Rook. That is exactly right. I wish for you to learn Occlumency, and once that is mastered, eventually to learn Legilimency. It is quite imperative that you do this. We only have one person in our ranks, besides me, that can do this. He will teach you. It should be quite convenient."

"How do you mean, Professor?" Natalia asked, a brow raised in curiosity.

"Why, your potions master; Severus, of course. He is proficient in both Occlumency and Legilimency. He can teach you. I have the fullest confidence in you that you will be a fast learner in this art. People are more defensive of their mind once they are aware that people can get into it. I think this will be the case, especially for you." Dumbledore's eyes glittered even more brightly than before, making Natalia cringe.

"I will learn these arts for you, sir. I have never been out of the country, but the thought of doing so intrigues me, even if I don't know the reason for leaving just yet. I am prepared to help all that I can."

Dumbledore nodded again. "Ms. Rook. You need to know. Being in the Order is a risk to your life. Death Eaters that are still among us will try to kill you if they find out. They assume the Order disbanded after the first war, but we have been keeping tabs on as many of them as we can. There is only so much we can do, however, given that our numbers are quite lower than when we first assembled. I will continue to recruit for the cause. I have reason to believe that the Death Eaters will be gathering again very soon. Just a feeling in my gut, but it is hardly ever wrong," he said with a slight smile.

Natalia smiled back nervously. She then steeled herself mentally and emboldened her will. "I will gladly give my life to help you and protect Harry Potter, sir. I assume this is largely about him. Him being an unexpected fourth contestant for the tournament isn't really a coincidence, is it?" she asked quietly.

"No, my dear. I do not think that it is a coincidence. I am still working on that. I can't seem to find anyone that could have entered his name, however. It is strange indeed."

Natalia nodded solemnly. "I will keep an eye out sir."

"Thank you, Ms. Rook. I am sure that you will be a great addition to the Order. Thank you for coming. Now, I promised you sherry… Would you like a glass?"

Natalia shook her head. "I think I have a lot to think about right now, Professor. I would probably do better with a clear head. Raincheck?" she asked smiling.

Dumbledore nodded his head. "Of course, my dear. I will contact you if I need you again. I am sure it will be soon." Natalia nodded in response and got up to leave.

"Good day, sir. Oh, and thank you for my room here. I feel like I am back home." Dumbledore smiled at her and she turned to leave.

"Oh, Ms. Rook?" Natalia turned back to him. "Guard your heart as well as your mind, my dear. You are too young for so much pain. While the world may be changing, I would hate for you to come to harm."

Natalia wasn't sure what he meant, and her quizzical features showed as much. She just nodded, confused and turned to leave, going back to her room.

/

A few weeks later, the day of the second task, Severus was furious. Someone had broken into his classroom. Some of the Polyjuice Potion that … Natalia had brewed, was taken. It was stolen right out of the potions cabinet along with some Gillyweed. Why on earth someone would want that slimy, gritty ingredient, he couldn't say, but he was furious that it was stolen nonetheless.

Finally, an hour before noon, Severus walked with the rest of the school to the area of the second task. He didn't even know what the task was, it was kept a secret so that the champions couldn't ask their favorite teachers and prepare early. Ludo Bagman, the Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, put a slight 'sonorus' charm on his voice and started speaking once everyone had taken their seats. Severus could see Natalia near the front where the champions were standing on the edge of the dock. She looked concerned. A whistle blew and the four of them jumped into the frigid black waters of the lake.

At that moment, Ludo chuckled and spoke again through the sonorus charm.

"Alright! Ladies and gentleman! The second task has begun! With the champions safely under the murky depths of the lake, I can explain what is going on. After the first task, all the champions retrieved a golden egg, which, when opened, told them a clue as to the second task. The clue was this;

_Come seek us where our voices sound,_

_We cannot sing above the ground,_

_And while you're searching ponder this;_

_We've taken what you'll sorely miss,_

_An hour-long you'll have to look,_

_And to recover what we took,_

_But past an hour, the prospect's black,_

_Too late, it's gone, it won't come back._

"So, what does that mean for our champions? Earlier today, something very precious to them was taken, unknowingly. They have one hour to retrieve these items or they will be gone forever! _NOW_! It looks like, if I have this right, that both Fleur Delacour and Cedric Diggory have used a bubblehead charm. Viktor Krum partially transfigured himself into a shark; quite a bit of brilliant wand work there; if I do say so myself. This makes it so that he swims with the efficiency of a human, yet can still breath and attack as a shark. Very well done!

"Finally, comes Mister Harry Potter. He seems to be a favorite to _lose_ this task, but I guess only time will tell! He has reportedly used Gillyweed! Now I am not sure you all know, but Gillyweed is a terribly disgusting plant that gives the person that consumes it, gills to breathe as well as webbing between the fingers and toes to help them swim better. I have to say, it looks like Potter was looking for some originality points here. Good on him!"

Severus was livid. So it was bloody Potter that took the Polyjuice and the gillyweed from his personal stores, ey? He will be punished for this. Whether he is Dumbledore's favorite or not, he can't just do whatever he wishes without some consequences! Severus stood from his seat and strolled down to the front where Dumbledore was sitting. He stood quite grumpily next to the old man and waited until he was done speaking with Bagman to talk to him. When Dumbledore turned, he saw Severus' frown and smiled.

"Severus, my boy! What can I do for you?" he asked kindly.

"Nothing pleasant, Albus. I am here to report a theft. Some Polyjuice potion was taken from my personal stores today, along with some Gillyweed. I have reason to believe that Potter is responsible," Severus explained in a huff.

Dumbledore frowned and looked around Severus as if he was searching for someone. When he found who he was looking for, he waved them over. When Severus turned to see who it was he gasped a bit. Dumbledore had called over Natalia and while Severus had seen her from afar, seeing her up close brought her beauty closer to examine. Her cheeks were flushed with the cold and the excitement of the event. Her brows were furrowed, though, in worry. Her auburn hair was tied in a loose bun atop her head and she was bundled up with a khaki-colored penny coat and a Hufflepuff scarf wrapped around her neck.

"Yes, sir?" she asked timidly.

"Ms. Rook. Please explain to Severus here what you explained to me," he asked politely.

"About the…" Dumbledore nodded. Natalia cleared her throat and continued. "Well, this morning I heard Harry talking to one of his friends, the redhead, about still not knowing what exactly to do for the event. He knew it would be something underwater, but he wasn't sure exactly what it was. When the event was about to start, I was near him and he had the Gillyweed. I asked him where he got it, he just said 'It was on my bedside table this morning after breakfast.' While I thought it was strange I reported it to Dumbledore but before he could do anything, the whistle was blown and the event started."

Dumbledore nodded. "You see Severus, Harry couldn't have stolen it if it was just in his room. Now, the fact that some of the Polyjuice Potion was stolen is a concern and I will, of course, look into that."

"My polyjuice was stolen? When?" Natalia asked quickly.

"This morning, along with the Gillyweed. It is why I suspected Potter. But if you are sure that he didn't take it, just because he said so, then so be it. I will get back to my seat." Severus growled. He felt someone put their hand on his shoulder and the expected shock jolted through him. He stopped and turned to look at her.

"What is it, Ms. Rook?" he asked, using her formal name purposefully.

She frowned and released his shoulder, then looked back at Dumbledore who was smiling. She looked back to Severus. "Can I talk to you?" she asked quietly.

Severus just shrugged and started to walk off, so she followed him giving a quick wave to Dumbledore. When they were on the side of the little bleachers that were set up for the event, Severus turned around. "What is it, Ms. Rook?" he asked, seemingly annoyed. She cringed in response.

"Did I displease you somehow sir? Did I offend you with that kiss that we shared? Ever since it, you have been… cold. Withdrawn. Hiding from any communication besides apprenticeship lessons. What did I do wrong?"

Severus' heart nearly broke for the girl. He frowned at seeing her face so pained. He sighed. "You haven't done anything wrong, Natalia. I am sorry if I ever made you feel that way… It is just…complicated. I don't really think I can get into it right now. I need to go and check to see if anything else is stolen."

"I will help you then. Especially since it was the potion that I brewed that was stolen." She looked determined to follow, no matter what his answer was, so he sighed and nodded.

"Very well."

She smiled faintly at him and started to march up to the castle. She was shortly behind and their walk was a silent one. Once they got to the potions classroom, Natalia walked in first but allowed Severus ahead of her to open the storeroom. Once he did so he went inside and Natalia was close on his tail. She closed the door behind them. The short candle that was on the wall was flickering a faint light in the room and Severus quickly turned around to face Natalia.

"Open the door, Natalia. We will be able to see better," he explained calmly. His voice may have been calm, but his heart was beating so fast he was afraid it would jump out.

"No. I don't want to. Not until you tell me what is going on. You kiss me, just like I ask, and then you act as if you are walking on eggshells, and avoid me like the plague. You say I haven't done anything wrong, but if that's the case, then why are you acting so strangely around me?"

Severus sighed. "Natalia… I really can't explain it without sounding like a dunderhead myself, so don't ask that of me. Just… don't." He sighed again, running a jittery hand through his silky black hair.

Natalia frowned and looked up at him. "Severus. Please. I have to fix this. I miss our talks. I miss being able to talk about the latest potions lectures, or just reading in complete silence waiting for a potion to finish brewing. I miss it. It is all so awkward now. I hate it. I just want to go back to the way it was. So, please tell me what is going on!"


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: **The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN: **Sorry for the long wait, my lovely readers! I was having computer issues. Still do, but not enough to stop me for any longer! So onward! Things are heating up! I hope that you are all enjoying the story. Any questions, concerns or requests, please review and PM me!

* * *

**Dedicated:** This chapter is dedicated to; Idontknoworcareanymore, Ldsneko, cmassey9212, fanpire.x, BBTfankat, PaperLily-chan, illuminates, melin-hope, MirandaRose22, and UzumakiPixie for following the story! You guys are great! I hope to see you all in the reviews soon :D I am almost caught up with all you wonderful people that have subscribed to the story and once I am caught up I will just be dedicating the chapters to the readers that subscribed to the story since it was last updated! We are at 53 followers now! I am very excited about it! Thank you so much, guys!

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Severus sighed "Natalia, I'm no good at small talk nor am I any better at expressing myself."

"You're not good at expressing yourself?" Natalia fumed. "You're doing a damn fine job at it. You're avoiding me like I'm a blast-ended skrewt!" she all but yelled at him.

She hadn't meant to get upset but she was sick of him brushing her off. It had been going on for weeks! If he hadn't wanted to kiss her, then why had he? She didn't _Imperio_ him, for Merlin's sake. She might as well have been invisible for all the attention he was giving her. She had thought with his response at the kiss that he had been at least a little interested and now she was beginning to wonder why he'd even done it in the first place. She obviously had misread the situation. _Stupid, __**stupid **__witch, _she chided herself.

Severus stared at her with a look of shock on his face. She had never once gotten angry with him, not even when he'd made his snide remarks at the beginning of their apprenticeship. He was an idiot. He hadn't seen how much he'd hurt her trying to keep a distance, and now he felt like the dungeon bat everyone called him.

Looking into her furious eyes, he whispered an apology. "I'm sorry, Natalia. I hadn't realised that I had upset you so much."

"By Merlin's saggy blue boxers, Severus!" she exclaimed. "I'm am not a legilimens! I can not read your mind! All I know is that you _KISSED_ me and then avoided me like I was the Avada curse itself. How do you expect me to feel?" Natalia growled.

Severus was taken back by the ferocity in her voice. He'd really screwed up this time. All he'd wanted to do was protect her from himself. He'd never thought that by ostracizing her, she'd be angry.

"I'm sorry. I didn't think-," Severus said before Natalia cut him off in the middle of his sentence.

"Severus, I want _whatever_ it was we had back. I don't want to fight. I hate fighting with you. Just promise me you'll stop ignoring me. Please, I can't take it!" she exclaimed, her brown eyes looking into his obsidian black ones with all the desperation that she felt.

At that moment, when Severus looked back into her beautiful brown and honey speckled eyes, he felt something. He didn't know what, but he felt it. He also felt his resolve snap. He reached his hand out gently cupping her face as he brought her closer to him. He kept staring into her eyes looking for any hint of disapproval as he softly touched his lips to hers. She all but melted into him, a soft moan escaping her lips.

Looking back later, he'd say he'd temporarily lost his mind because, at that moment, he kissed her more soundly while she reciprocated. He probed his tongue along her lips asking her without words to allow him in, and she did. His tongue swirled with hers and she tasted like chocolate. A moan escaped his lips this time and she drew him closer. When they pulled apart it was because they were both breathless.

"Wow," Natalia breathed huskily.

Severus just smiled. "This will stay between us, I hope," he teased.

Natalia playfully swatted his arm as she laughed. "No, I think I'll just pop off and write an owl to the Daily Prophet," she said with a straight face. After seeing Severus' face drain of color, she burst out laughing.

"Of course, Severus, and besides I don't exactly go about discussing who I've been kissing. What kind of witch do you take me for?" she asked playfully.

"A seductress," Severus countered, a fire blazing in his gut from the searing kiss.

Natalia laughed, walking over to the door and opening it, letting the light in. "I suppose we should see if anything else was actually stolen then?" Natalia asked, changing the subject expertly. Severus nodded and they set to work going through the extremely detailed list of all the ingredients Severus had for his personal potions cabinet.

It didn't take long to discover that nothing else was taken. After about ten minutes, and double-checking their lists, they gave up, locked the storeroom and walked together back to the Black Lake to see the rest of the event. They got back just in time to see Cedric Diggory return with Ms. Cho Chang, his date to the Yule Ball.

'_They took people! How barbaric?! What if the champions are late and the hour is up? The merpeople said they would be gone. They won't come back.'_ Natalia refused to think that Dumbledore would actually allow students to die.

Natalia watched as Fleur Delacour came up next, but she didn't have anyone in tow. Natalia worried that she was late and wasn't able to get that which she held most dear. She reported to Bagman that she was attacked by Grindylows and was unable to get to the Merpeople's village. After Fleur, immediately came Viktor Krum with Hermione Granger holding tightly to his back. He quickly transfigured back to be fully human and kissed her cheek. She blushed and they all were fished out and sat on a private pier to dry and warm up.

The hour was almost up and people were waiting restlessly on the edge of their seats for Potter to emerge from the bowels of the Black Lake with the person he held most dear. As the seconds ticked by more lackadaisical with every minute, Natalia got continuously more nervous. She grasped at Severus' hand and held it tightly in anticipation. He looked down at his hand as if something foreign was happening, but he just shrugged, hid a small smile and continued to watch the still, glass-like lake.

Suddenly, ripples appeared and a wet redhead popped to the surface sputtering for air, followed quickly behind by a small blond girl. Natalia heard Fleur gasp in surprise and cry out.

"Gabrielle. My seester! Come, come." Fleur splashed at the water at the edge of the dock the champions were standing on to get her little sister's attention. The little girl, with the help of the ginger sidekick, got to the pier. Fleur grasped at her tightly, holding her wet form to herself. While the Veela woman spoke French to make sure her sister was alright, Natalia lost track of the conversation.

After the excitement of the two 'treasures' coming out, the people in the stands were still awaiting the fourth champion to make an appearance. Then, right as the clock sang of the new hour, a body was propelled out of the water, gasping for breath, a stray Grindylow attached to his leg. The students and professors that were in the stands stood and yelled in celebration! Harry made it!

Natalia smiled at Severus and went in to kiss him in excitement. At the last moment, she pulled away and looked around to see if anyone had noticed. Luckily for her, they were all too entranced at watching the Boy-Who-Lived. She smiled shyly at Severus and took his hand, dragging him to the private pier. As a trained healer, Dumbledore asked her to check up on everyone after the event was complete. She checked on the Diggory boy and Ms. Chang first, and as she did she overheard Fleur talking to Harry.

"My seester! You saved 'er!" She went and kissed both of Harry's cheeks at that moment. She then turned to Ron. "And you! You 'elped!" She went and kissed Ron as well. He blushed a deep red.

"Well, yea. A bit," he said shyly, still blushing from the kiss.

Natalia chuckled after giving the first victorious champion a clean bill of health and sent the two on their way. She checked on each champion and their 'treasure' one by one before Dumbledore and Bagman would announce the winner. They seemed to be in deep deliberation. Finally, Dumbledore set a slight Sonorus charm on his voice and declared,

"As Cedric Diggory was the first to come back with Ms. Chang, he will be awarded first place! Normally, with Viktor Krum coming out after, he would be awarded second place, however, after much deliberation, it is decided that Harry Potter will be awarded that honor. Harry arrived at the hostages first, and only his desire to see them all safe had stopped him from finishing first. So he is award second place, for his incredible moral fibre! Then Mr. Krum in third, and Ms. Delacour in fourth for being unable to finish the task. In the end, this makes Ms. Delacour become in third place, Mr. Krum, in second, and Mr. Potter and Mr. Diggory tied for first! Thank you all for watching, and we hope to see you for the third task!"

Igor Karkaroff scoffed in defiance at the ruling but made no other argument about it. Hermione kissed Viktor's check and went to hug Harry in congratulations. Natalia smiled at all of them before looking back to Severus. She smiled at him again, blushing lightly. He graced her with a rare smile and turned away to go back to the castle.

/

The following weeks were much better between Severus and Natalia. While they were in their lessons they were very professional and kept their minds on their work… Mostly. Natalia had many urges to kiss her mentor while he was focused on a task. He looked so serious and attuned to the task at hand, Natalia just wanted to distract him for a moment, to make the creases on his forehead disappear along with the scowl that put them there. However, she never acted on that impulse. She wasn't a Gryffindor after all. She was a Hufflepuff. Patient, kind, and hardworking, not brave, reckless, and impulsive.

When the lessons were over, however, it was a different story. Severus would invite her to eat dinner with him some nights. There were, of course, nights where they would make an appearance in the Great Hall and talk to their friends. Natalia was getting quite close to the other professors, Sprout and McGonagall especially. When they dined alone, however, it was an intimate affair. They would eat together, talk of their plans for the future and what potion they planned on brewing. They would talk about their pasts to one another, Natalia more so than Severus, but Natalia knew not to pry. He was a private man, but the details into his life were his to share and she wouldn't push.

He had told her of his parents. How his father was a drunk and a muggle that hated magic. His father called him a freak of nature and a worthless boy very regularly. He even told her of his Death Eater past one night while they were sitting together on his couch, and how he turned a spy for Dumbledore.

***Flashback***

"It was the biggest mistake of my life, Natalia. Someone very dear to me died because of me being involved in that type of lifestyle. I will never be able to live in peace because I caused their death. It makes me very unworthy of many things."

Natalia frowned and processed that information. Then she said, "Severus. You were young and foolish. You made a mistake. You have to forgive yourself. You have done so much since then, so much to make up for it. You needn't curse yourself to a life of loneliness anymore. You deserve much more than that." She took his hand and intertwined her fingers with his. Her other hand stroked the top of his fingers slowly. He tensed and she stopped a moment before continuing. "Many people care for you, Severus, myself included. Don't push us away because of a mistake."

Severus sighed and pulled her close to him, hugging her tightly. He didn't know what was so special about the girl, but he felt so vulnerable around her. _Safe_. That is what it was. He felt safe around her. Almost like he was supposed to tell his deepest secrets to her. He thought back to what Dumbledore had told him about Soul Bonds and frowned. Even if the man was correct, she didn't deserve to be locked with him for eternity. She deserved better. He tensed as she turned in his arms, facing him now. She gently laid her hands on either side of his face and pulled him gently into a chaste kiss.

When she pulled away she said quietly, "I can almost hear those gears turning in your head. What are you thinking about?"

He frowned in response. "I was thinking that you are too good for me. That you deserve better. A better man than I. I can not even honor a master-apprentice relationship. I push even that to the edge of propriety," he said, scowling at himself. Natalia frowned.

"Severus. I am a grown woman. I think it is also my choice of who I wish to be with. I think I am deserving of you, and you of me. You are a good man. Your past does not control your future. I know full well of how the master-apprentice relationship should be and I have no problems with how we act. We are very professional when you are teaching me. Who is to say what must happen in our time? As long as we stay on track with the apprenticeship, what does it matter that we converse and steal kisses on our own time?" She looked up at him when she asked that question, a slight smirk on her lips. She slowly bit her bottom lip and he growled.

"You little minx. You know when you do that what it does to me."

Natalia giggled. "No. I forget. What?"

Severus growled again, dipped his head and captured her mouth with his. He kissed her passionately, holding her close, never wanting to let her go. Suddenly, the image of Lily Evans popped into his head. Before she was married. Before he called her a mudblood. When they were friends. She was smiling her dazzling smile and was waving to him. He quickly pulled away from Natalia and stood, pacing his personal living quarters where they were sitting. Natalia looked confused as he traipsed in front of her.

"Sev? What is it? What just happened?" she asked timidly. Her voice pained him, again sounding hurt made him feel like it was his fault. He sighed. "Natalia… There is something I haven't told you, but I think it is time."

Natalia just looked at him expectantly. Severus sighed.

"Many, many years ago, there was this muggle-born girl that lived not too far from my childhood home. She was skilled in magic even from a young age. We quickly became friends. When we found out that she was accepted to go to Hogwarts, it was the best news that we could imagine. We could still be friends! The very first day of us going to Hogwarts, however, four boys teased me mercilessly for being poor, or having hand-me-down clothes. You name it and they harassed me for it. Lily always stuck up for me. As we grew up, my feelings for her went from friendship to crush, and from crush to love.

"However, it was never reciprocated. I was just her friend, always. One day, in our sixth year, those four boys came up to me and were teasing me again. Calling me names and hexing me. There was one hex that flipped me upside down and hung me by the ankle, my trousers showing for all of Hogwarts to see. They had me like that for about ten minutes before Lily found us and stopped them. They threw me down again and when Lily tried helping me up, I called her a filthy name. One that I had regretted immediately. I tried to apologize, but she was having none of that. She was done with me. I was dead to her. I couldn't believe that I could call someone such a terrible name if I loved them as much as I thought I had.

Natalia grabbed his hand to try to comfort him but he slowly drew it away. He didn't deserve comfort. She frowned a bit but let it go and let him continue as he paced.

"How could I treat someone that I respected, that I confided in for years, like dirt? It was the worst day of my life. It ended with me sleeping outside the Gryffindor common room to try to get her to talk to me. When she finally came out, she said, '_Sev. I want nothing more to do with you, you snake. Now go!'_" Severus sighed sadly.

"She was a Gryffindor and for six years we never let our houses get in the way of our friendship, but that day, something snapped. She was done with me. The news of the precious Gryffindor lioness rejecting her snake was all over the school before the next morning and I felt more ostracized than ever. It was then that I was able to be swayed over to the Death Eaters. They had been trying tirelessly to sway me for years, but I was wary until that morning. It was then that my future was planned for me from that day on. My miserable existence got worse from that day." He took a breath before continuing.

"I pledged myself to the Dark Lord after my Sixth year, was marked after I graduated, and in just over two years, my former best friend and her husband, my schoolyard bully, were killed because I had overheard a prophecy about an infant. That Halloween was the night the Dark Lord disappeared, but not before I went to Dumbledore, asked him, _begged him_ to help the Potter family. No matter what I felt of the bully from my past, my friend was in danger and I wanted her and her innocent baby saved. Albus did what he could. It just wasn't enough," he finished quietly.

Natalia was listening intently, not even thinking of interrupting. Severus sat down next to her, his head in his hands. She slowly moved over on the couch to sit beside him, gently rubbing his back in calming circles. He sighed in despair but refused to cry in front of her.

"So now you know what sort of monster I am. One that had his best friend and only love killed. One who switched sides because he is a spineless bastard, a coward," he said to the ground.

Natalia shook her head. "I see a man who regrets his actions from the past and have learned from them. I see a man that tried to right his wrongs and help as much as he could. I see a brave man that would risk his life to save his friend. I see you, Severus. I always have seen you. I won't say I'm happy that you were a part of You-Know-Who's group, but you turned around. You figured out your mistakes and went to fix them. That is the makings of a good man, no matter what you think about yourself," she did, still rubbing his back.

He looked up at her, his eyes were red with grief, and relief. Relief that he wasn't alone anymore. Relief that he had someone to understand him and not try to use him to their own devices. Someone that cared how he felt and wanted him to see himself the way she saw him. He had _her,_ and he felt an immense weight being lifted off his shoulders.

She smiled confidently at him, her smile so radiant it outshined Lily's in his memories. It distracted him, pulling his thoughts away from his lost love. He looked carefully at her. His apprentice. His friend. Now, his confidante. He smiled slightly and leaned in to kiss her softly. She leaned into the kiss, deepening it, folding her arms around him. He pulled her gently and she ended up sitting on his lap. They kissed silently aside from a few moans and sighs before Natalia pulled away gently.

"You are a good man Severus. I will fight every day to prove it to you if I must. And I will not stop until you believe it too."

He nodded. "Thank you. I forgot how it felt to have someone believe in you for you. Not because of your skills, but just because they know you and want what is best. I thank you, Natalia. You have become very important to me."

She smiled shyly, looking to the ground, a slight blush spreading over her cheeks. He gently took her chin in his hand and made her look at him.

He gave her a chaste kiss before saying, "I think we should call it a night. Tomorrow we start the Occlumency lessons and as I have warned you before, they will not be easy. They will tire you out, but Albus has requested you to learn it and I will teach you. I planned on it later in the apprenticeship, but I suppose it can't be helped. Until tomorrow."

She smiled brightly at him and nodded before slowly walking out of his private quarters.

Severus sighed and shook his head. _'Maybe Albus was right after all…'_

***End of Flashback***

The next day was the last day of the weekend and the perfect time to work on Occluding her mind. Natalia had been reading up on it for a few weeks since Dumbledore had mentioned it and had frowned. It was a difficult bit of magic, and as such, not many people knew how to do it. That fact just made Natalia more determined to succeed in this endeavour. She strolled into Severus' living room in his private quarters as he was expecting her and sat patiently on the couch. He came out of his private chambers a few minutes later looking freshly showered as his hair was still a bit damp.

Natalia smiled at him and gave him a shy wave.

"I hope you haven't eaten breakfast yet, Natalia. Occluding your mind is quite strenuous and can leave the caster nauseous and fatigued. However, you would much rather be tired than heaving up the contents of your stomach, believe me."

Natalia shook her head. "I was too nervous to eat. Will it truly be so dreadful?" she asked with a nervous quiver in her voice.

Severus frowned and looked at her. "I swear to you, Natalia. I will be as gentle as I can while still making sure that you are getting the lesson you need. It is not fluffy magic. This is quite serious and the effects are as well. It is just a lot of practice. Take this as an example; The more you practice to Occlude your mind, the less effort it will take. It will be as if your mind will have a wall up all around it to protect it. If anyone wants past that wall, they will have to probe harder and with that, you will feel it. At that point, you can either slide an iron door around your mind or allow them to see into your mind. It can be beneficial to do either or both."

Natalia frowned. "How can opening my mind to be read be beneficial?" she asked incredulously.

Severus smirked. "I will, of course, show you, but eventually, with many lessons to go before you are proficient, you should be able to alter a certain memory in your mind and feed it to the person that is looking. That would be quite beneficial against the Dark Lord, would it not? I know I used that many a time against him. It is why he thinks of me as his most loyal follower."

Natalia nodded, a nervous smile on her lips. "I suppose. Can we get this over with then? I just want to know what I am getting in bed with."

Severus nodded, pointed his wand at her, and said, "Prepare yourself." A second later he said, "_Legilimens._"

/

_Natalia was hurled back to her 10th birthday. Her friends from primary school were all running around her small yard where she grew up. There was a garden in the backyard where her mother was working as the children played. Her mother was always in that garden. She grew much of what she needed for her potions in it. Natalia shook her head and focused back on the party. _

_The kids were all running around playing with each other, but little Natalia was sitting on a tree branch all by herself. She looked to have been crying. When her mother saw her alone in the tree, she gently called up. "Nat, my little bug. What are you doing up there?"_

_Before Natalia could answer, she was flung into a different memory. Natalia seemed to not have changed at all and it was summer now. She figured it was the summer after her 10th birthday. Natalia was peeking into the window to her living room to see her mother talking with a strange woman with a pointy hat and strange green clothes. Little Natalia seemed to have gotten bored and ran off to hide in her tree. She had a flower in her hand and was making the petals open and close by themselves. She thought she was magic, but she was afraid to tell her mother. _

_At her tenth birthday, she was being made fun of for being weird when she showed her friends. Her mother got a letter after that and told Natalia that she can't show her friends any more magic tricks. Ever since then Natalia was afraid that her friends were right and that she shouldn't tell her mother. Instead, her mother told her about Hogwarts and explained that the woman there would teach her many things._

Another stomach clenching apparition to a new memory. Natalia was getting tired of that feeling. As she focused she could feel Severus poking around her memories, trying to see which one to watch first. She mentally tried to push him out. Nothing. She tried to erect walls to block him from seeing her memories. As she felt herself build a wall, she felt him kick it down just as easily. She was growing tired. Thinking of only one more thing to do, she focused with all her might and hollered, "_Protego!"_

She was once again in Severus' slate gray living room. She felt sick. She held her stomach before sitting down on the couch before her and folded herself in half trying to get rid of the pain. "Ugh!" she exclaimed. Severus frowned.

"That was not terrible for a first attempt. I felt both you trying to push me out and you trying to build the wall. However, that will definitely not stop any Death Eater from foraging in your mind, and it certainly won't stop the Dark Lord," he explained.

Natalia held down another wave of nausea long enough to ask, "Why is You-Know-Who's name keep popping up? He is dead, isn't he? Hasn't he been dead for the past 12 years? Why should I have to worry about my mind being pilfered by him for?"

Severus sighed and sat down beside her. "Albus has a feeling, due to recent events of the past four years, that the Dark Lord may return. Three years ago, he had somehow… possessed a teacher into trying to steal a valuable item to bring him immortality. It was then that we discovered that he is living a cursed life. A half-life. He has no corporeal body, but his soul lives on. Albus thinks that he is just trying to get a body and that way he will be able to return to his former glory.

"It seemed relatively peaceful last year besides a little breakout that I am sure you heard of in The Prophet. Otherwise, we didn't hear much activity from the Dark Lord trying to return, but Albus thinks this is the year. If that is the case, then I need to- You need to protect yourself and I need to teach you how."

Natalia frowned but nodded. "What do you suggest then? So that I can be better at _this_?" She motioned to her head indicating the lessons to protect her mind.

Severus smirked a little, ever impressed with her thirst for knowledge. "I would suggest building a wall right now, in your mind. Practice quickly. See it in your mind, feel the energy that it takes to do so. Once that is done, inside those walls you need to clear all emotions, memories, feelings; anything that you do not want someone to find, and banish them deeper into your mind. Surround them with another set of walls; taller, thicker walls. You need to feel blank and empty. Then you will have a fresh easel in which to work with. It will be much easier once you accomplish that. It is just the fact of clearing your mind that is a difficult issue to deal with," he explained gently.

Natalia nodded and mentally pictured what he was saying. It was more difficult than she originally thought it would be. She furrowed her brow in concentration doing as he instructed, however, she added a bit herself. Behind that inner wall that protected her memories, she put mighty chests with locks on them. Inside those chests were organized thoughts, memories, fantasies, and secrets. At least, that is how she hoped it would work out. If she was successful any wizard trying to probe her mind would have to break through two walls and loot the locked chests. She just hoped it worked.

Severus smiled at her work when she asked him to try again. He was still able to break into her mind, past both walls, and crack open all the chests, but he was impressed.

"If you keep this up we will be much more advanced in this skill than you should be. It should be quite interesting. Your organization is astounding. I like the idea of the chests behind the second wall. It's just another layer of protection but helps with organizing your thoughts. Let's take a break and come back to this tonight. In the meantime, I want you to keep organizing your thoughts and building those walls. We will see if you improve after a few hours rest," he said softly. Natalia nodded in response, shaking her head. With a quick kiss to his cheek, she left the potion master's chambers and went to her own to practice more.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter Universe is not owned by me but by the lovely J.K Rowling. I wish I was as brilliant as her. In that regards, this fanfic is 100% original and something that I dreamt one night. I just added onto it as I went along.

* * *

**AN:** I know this is kinda escalating a bit fast, but the 4th book was probably my favorite of all time, and a lot of it was centered around Harry. I am trying to incorporate Severus and Natalia's relationship as we go, and I think I'm doing well, I just don't want to give you too much filler stuff, or go toooooo deep, too soon, ya know? Anyway. Here's the next chapter! I hope you like it. Also, my co-writer, BeautiflDisastar helped me write this chapter as well! I miss herrrrr. Anywayyyy, enjoy the chapter! It's the longest one yet!

* * *

**Dedicated: ** Charmed2100, Scarlett Raye, victoria cullen35, Hell's Butterflies, Reclaimer4theB.O.B, hellcatz93, ladymoonscar, shadows-in-hell, buddykilla, janni1 for being the first to favorite the story since I started! I appreciate the support you guys, you don't even know!

* * *

**Chapter 13**

Natalia had another occlumency lesson later the next night. Severus wanted to do as many lessons as possible to get her up to speed. She nor he knew when she would need to use the skill, so they had no time to lose. She remembered what Severus had said earlier the previous morning about not eating before her lesson or she would not only be tired but end up sick as well. Seeing as she didn't fancy vomiting all over or in front of Severus ever again, she chose to forego dinner even though she was already starving. Having skipped lunch due to practicing closing her mind and the time passing by faster than she thought possible, she was hungry. With that thought, Natalia hurried into the dungeon where Severus was waiting.

Natalia remembered what Severus had told her about clearing her mind so she tried to just like she had practiced, but the more she tried to empty it, the busier it became. She sighed with frustration. She was never going to get this. She took a deep breath and tried building a wall. She pictured a red wall being put together, brick by brick and the bricks being mortared together and held that image there.

"Ready?" Severus asked gently. Natalia nodded her head, breathing shakily.

"_Legilimens,_" Severus said fully expecting the same result as yesterday. He was very surprised when he ran, mind first, into a brick wall. He tried pushing past the wall. That got him nowhere. He tried going around the wall but he couldn't see an end to it. Finally, he tried taking the wall down but with every brick that he managed to take down, three more were put up. He was very impressed.

However, after about five minutes the wall wavered and completely disintegrated. Memories from Natalia's past began assaulting him faster than the first time he had done this. Severus pulled out of Natalia's mind. He wondered what had happened. She had been doing so well and then... chaos.

"What happened, Natalia?" Severus asked. "You were doing amazing and I thought you had actually gotten it and then... everything fell apart." He continued looking at Natalia for her explanation of these events.

Natalia sighed. "At first, I was picturing building a wall. Every aspect of a wall being built from the bricks being put in place to the mortar sealing the bricks. That was the easy part. I felt you trying to get around the wall, so I imagined a wall so wide the eye couldn't see the end of it. Then when you tried taking my bricks down I started building it faster and that was even working but when you just sat there I was trying to keep the image of my wall and that was the hard part; concentrating solely on keeping the image of my wall, and I felt my concentration slip and my wall crashed. I failed," Natalia explained dejectedly.

Severus put his hand on Natalia's shoulder comfortingly. "Natalia, I am one of the best Legilimens in the country and you managed to block me out for a good while. For this being only the second attempt, you did well. I would have expected those results from someone who has been practicing for months longer than you. It is a taxing ability. One that took me years to master. You have done exceptionally well today. Do not beat yourself up because you didn't master an ability that takes most years to accomplish what you have in two tries. You should be proud of yourself. I know I am," he told Natalia.

"However, I think that is enough for tonight and we should retire to my chambers for nourishment," he proclaimed. Severus was quite hungry and he was sure Natalia was too. Natalia nodded her head vehemently in agreement. She clasped her hand together with his and they walked towards his chambers.

Severus snapped his fingers and Gabby appeared.

"Master Snape requires Gabby?" the house-elf asked.

"Yes, Gabby. If it would please you, I would like you to bring up two plates of food and two goblets of butterbeer," he told the little old elf kindly.

"Gabby will do so. Gabby would be pleased. Gabby is happy to serve Master Snape and Mistress Natalia," Gabby said excitedly and then disappeared with a small pop. Gabby reappeared a few minutes later followed by another elf. A male this time, that was wearing a very odd combination of clothes. He had on about six knitted hats in a tower and had an assortment of socks covering his knobbly legs and what looked like a pillowcase covering his body.

When he saw Natalia and Severus, he bowed. "Mistress. Master. Dobby has come to help Gabby serve proudly." He snapped his fingers and place settings appeared upon the table they were sitting at. Gabby then put a plate of food and a goblet before both Severus and Natalia. Dobby bowed again and Gabby curtsied. Gabby said, "We be pleased to serve master and mistress anytime," before they both disappeared with two 'pops'.

Severus and Natalia started eating. During their meal, they spoke of many things. However, one common subject kept reappearing. It seemed that Severus was worried for Harry Potter, though for some reason he didn't care for anyone except her to know of it. He was worried about the last task. He knew that Harry had barely made it through the last two tasks, which he wouldn't have made it at all without the help from others.

Severus had also told her he had seen Ludo Bagman approach the boy on numerous occasions, something he found very strange indeed. Severus also thought that Alastor Moody had been acting strange lately but the headmaster had laughed it off when he had mentioned to him.

"As much as the boy is every bit the dunderhead his father was before him, I don't want to see anything bad happen to him. I promised nothing would happen…" Severus trailed off.

Natalia looked up from her dinner. "Promised who, Severus?" she asked curiously.

Severus sighed. "Albus. Lily. Hell, I even promised James _bloody_ Potter and Sirius _damn_ Black. After all, it's only my fault Lily and James never saw their son's second birthday. My fault that Sirius spent twelve years in Azkaban for something he didn't do. And Albus? I promised that for his protection and to be near the Potter boy. It's the least I can do after my colossal mistake cost them all something they can never get back," Severus moaned dejectedly.

"Severus Snape!" Natalia growled at him. "You will stop blaming yourself for something that was out of your control. You did what you could. After all, did you tell He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to go after the Potters? Did you tell him to murder innocent people? An innocent baby? Have you told him to continuously try to murder Harry? Well?! Did you?!" Natalia snapped at him.

Severus shook his head to indicate the negative.

"I didn't think so," Natalia said. She stood, took his hands in hers and gently kissed his forehead. "Severus, you've got to quit living in the past. You have to stop blaming yourself. Please try to do this. You deserve so much more than self-loathing," Natalia said softly.

Severus just scoffed. "If you say so," he muttered. Natalia got a pleased look on her face.

"Indeed, I do! And as I said before, I will fight to prove it to you if I need to."

Severus nodded half-heartedly and shrugged. "Alright. Alright. You infernal woman. Just like Minerva, you are, saying that I am a better man than I think. I can't blame it on Gryffindor foolhardiness. You are a Hufflepuff."

"Blame it on the loyalty then. We Hufflepuffs stand by our friends, no matter what," she said with a slight grin on her lips as she sat to finish her dinner. "You _**are**_ a good man, Severus. I am glad to have met you and I am honored to be your apprentice."

Severus graced her with his ever-less, rare smiles that he seemed to save just for her. She smiled back, a heat growing near her gut. She finished the last bite of her food, swallowed it down with the last of her Butter Beer and stood to walk toward him. She leaned down and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips.

"I'll be retiring to my room now, sir. If there is nothing else you need of me?" she asked with a slight smirk.

Severus grinned. "Not at this moment, Ms. Rook. You are dismissed. Goodnight. Our next lesson will be every day after our potions lessons." Natalia just nodded, shot him a brilliant smile and walked out of the room.

Severus smiled to himself. He felt like a new man. A huge weight lifted off his shoulders when he told Natalia about Lily. About his misadventures with the Death Eaters. Even though he hadn't gotten to the nitty-gritty of everything he had done, she still wanted to be with him. To prove to him that he was worthy of… love. Severus frowned.

Love was a topic that he was frightened to pursue. The last woman he loved threw him out in the dust when he made a mistake. His mother, once his father was done beating her, couldn't stand to be in his presence. She was afraid of all men. That is all he knew of "love". It was a disappointment and it hurt. The way Natalia acted around him though, it was pure. She wanted to be around him. Yet, it didn't interfere with the apprenticeship. She kept her mind on her goals and she was doing better even in the short time they had starting working together. He had to admire that. She wasn't some nimbling fool-hearted student that would toss aside schoolwork or friendships for the next snog. She kept to her work as professionally as if they were not involved at all. It was impressive, to say the least, and he admired her for that.

Not just for that, if he was being honest with himself, and he was doing entirely too much of that lately. He shook her from his mind half-heartedly, went to his desk and began grading some essays. He noticed one in particular. One, Neville Longbottom. He sighed. He was a fool when it came to practical potions, but upon further reading of his essay, Severus realized that he wrote passionately about potions ingredients. Plant-based ingredients especially. He gave the essay an 'E', made a note to keep an eye on his interest in plants, and went to the next essay.

He seemed to fly through grading the essays and upon further inspection making sure he didn't miss anything, he noticed quite a bit less 'red' corrections on each one. Even Potter's essay was seemingly better than usual. Severus shrugged, giving Natalia the credit for this as well. While he knew that he was a proficient teacher, Natalia sat down with students that were struggling instead of ignoring them as Severus had like to do, especially with the Gryffindors. Severus shrugged, put away the parchment essays and retired to sleep for the night.

/

Two months later. The end of June was quickly approaching, and the third challenge was as well. Quidditch had been cancelled a few weeks ago and a huge maze was built on the sports field. While the die-hard Quidditch fans were pretty irate at the lack of availability of the field, they were equally excited to find out what was happening in the maze. Aurors were surrounding it at all times, and the students from all three schools could hear the howls and screams of the beasts within. Hagrid had boasted to Natalia over lunch one day that he had bred a special creature made especially for the maze.

"Well, nah exactly fo' the maze. Dumbledore foun' out 'bout 'em an' he suggested tha' dey go in dere for my safety. Great man, that Dumbledore. Always lookin' out for others bes' interes' an' whatnot," Hagrid gushed. Natalia just smiled and continued with her meal.

The only person allowed anywhere near the Maze before the last challenge was the retired Auror turned Defense against the Dark Arts Professor. Mad-Eye Moody took the Triwizard Cup into the Center of the Maze on the morning of the third and final task. Natalia was walking to the grandstands surrounding the maze and overheard the two redheaded twins taking bets. Natalia smirked but let it go. Since she wasn't technically staff, she didn't have to ruin the fun. She would save that for Severus.

_'I am sure he will appreciate that,'_ she thought to herself with a silent chuckle. She arrived at a tent that held the four champions. Due to her healing experience, she did an exam over all four of them to make sure they were not using anything to help with their performance, and that they were healthy enough to do the task. Any slight injuries before the task could become life-threatening by the end of it. When she cleared them all to go, they all lined up in front of the maze entrance and waited for the signal.

As the champions were lining up, Dumbledore stood in the announcer's booth where Lee Jordan normally did the commentary for Quidditch games. He started on his elaborate speech but Natalia tuned him out for a minute while she searched for Severus. They had agreed on sitting with each other while they watched the task, that way they could practice her occlumency skill. Over the last two months of practicing, she had been continuously successful at keeping him out of her mind for at least ten minutes at a time, and now she was working on making false memories. She took it as a challenge yet also as a game. It was easier that way. There were times of course that were more difficult, where Severus would try his hardest to break through her defenses and push her to the edge, but he always warned her when he planned to do that.

Natalia frowned, not able to see him, she focused on what the headmaster was saying.

"...Oh, find the cup, if you can, but be careful. You might just lose yourself along the way. If there are any issues just wave your wand in the air, and red sparks will fly out. It will be considered a forfeit, but Aurors will be by your side in moments to help if you feel overwhelmed or in over your head. Now, with that, once the cannon blasts-"

The cannon, manned by Argus Filch suddenly boomed and Argus shrugged when Dumbledore shot him a frown. The four champions looked a bit confused and Mad-Eye allowed the two tied champions, Harry Potter and Cedric Diggory, to go first. They ran forward and disappeared behind the brush. Viktor Krum was released next a minute later, followed by Fleur Delacour, a minute after him. Then all was silent. The shush that spread quickly over the crowd was deafening, almost ear-splitting. It was so quiet that Natalia squeaked in surprise when she felt a large hand on the small of her back and a whispered voice in her ear.

"Would you like to take a seat, Ms. Rook?" Severus asked quietly, a small smile playing on his lips.

Natalia sighed, relief washing over her that it was Severus and not something more nefarious. She turned, gracing him with a brilliant smile that made him visibly relax. As if her smile was the cue, a band started playing and the chatter turned deafening as the whole school wondered who would get to the Cup first. There were many roars of the beasts within and there was a slight chill that indicated a dementor or two.

Sure enough, a slight mist was occluding part of the maze from the viewers' eyes. Many viewers started looking for any red sparks indicating someone needing help. All they saw was an abounding white light and an antler or two. That distracted them with the rumor already spreading that it must have been Harry Potter dealing with the dementor as he was the only Champion that they knew that could form a corporeal Patronus.

Natalia, seeing her opportunity, grasped at Severus' hand, intertwining her fingers with his and pulled him away to the teacher's seats, their hands hidden by their robes. They needn't worry about being seen as anyone curious enough to pry into their lives was currently watching intently at the labyrinth before them. Natalia gave Severus' hand a gentle squeeze before, reluctantly pulling away.

"I have a bad feeling about this task Natalia. My… mark has been burning more intensely lately and it is concerning. It hasn't done that in over 10 years. Igor has reported to me that his mark was burning as well. It is a sign," Severus quietly whispered to her.

Natalia frowned. "Have you spoken to the Headmaster?" Severus just nodded. "Well! What did he say?"

Severus sighed, frowning. "He said that he has every precaution around and in the school to be aware of any dangerous activities." Natalia scoffed. "I know. This whole tournament is dangerous, but he has multiplied security, has aurors all over the place, and apparently, has fail-safes in the maze that help the champions if they are unable to shoot the sparks for assistance, once it gets to _his_ level of dangerous," Severus sneered. He looked to Dumbledore who was speaking to Minerva and glanced over. Seeing Severus looking at him, he waved a little and smiled, his eyes glittering brightly as he saw Severus with Natalia. The dour potions master just frowned and looked away.

"But Severus, with my polyjuice potion gone, anything could happen. One of those Aurors could be someone that has it in for the students. Now that I think about it…" Natalia trailed off, her brow furrowing in deep thought. She suddenly gasped and stood. "I will be right back."

Severus stood with her, grabbing her hand before she could scurry away. "Nat. What is it? What is wrong?" Natalia just shook her head pulling him with her as he wouldn't release her hand.

"I am not sure yet. I have a suspicion though. It may be nothing, but…" she trailed off again as she scurried out of the stands and walked briskly up the short path back to the school. Severus had to walk faster to keep up. He was surprised that even though he was a good head and a half taller than she was, she was pretty quick. His billowing robes followed after him as he hurried after her. She was running now, trying to get to her destination as quickly as possible.

Once in the Entrance Hall, Natalia hurried down the cobblestone stairs towards the dungeons and the kitchen. She rushedly said the password to her rooms, _Severus Snape_ and waited impatiently as the portrait lazily swung open. As soon as it was open enough to squeeze through, Natalia was off like a bolt of lightning. She went right into her bedroom, tore open a chest at the end of her bed, and brought out a box. She took the top off of the box and rummaged through all the papers inside. She groaned as she went through page after page while Severus just looked on the scene quietly and patiently.

She threw many pages aside as she went saying, "No. This isn't it. I know it is in here somewhere. Where is it? I know I saw it."

Severus was getting impatient after about ten minutes of this. "Natalia. What are you looking for, perhaps I can help look?" he asked, his annoyance light in his voice.

She looked up from her task briefly. "Oh, here. I am looking for a letter that was sent to me by one of my customers that I make potions privately for. When I took up the apprenticeship I wrote to most of them letting them know I wouldn't likely have time to brew for them while I was apprenticing under you. There was one that was signed with A.M. I think that… I think that it was Professor Moody. I don't remember what he ordered, so I am not sure what to look for, but I think he was the one getting the Polyjuice from me. After I stopped making it, he would still require some. That explains the stolen polyjuice from around the second task. I don't remember him signing any other correspondence so I am not sure, but I think it may have been a slip-up."

Severus frowned at this news. "If that is the case, then Alastor is probably using that potion to go undercover on his free weekends doing work for the Ministry. He is an Auror after all," he rationalized.

Natalia shook her head. "If that was the case, then he wouldn't have needed to order from me. He would have a whole source that the Ministry supplies. That way there is no chance of it being tampered with."

Severus couldn't fight her logic, he just hoped it wasn't so. "If he is indeed the one that ordered the Polyjuice from you, we may need to get the Headmaster involved. He was trying to figure out how Potter's name got in the Goblet. Only people of legal Wizarding age can go in the circle. He could have-" he suddenly gripped his left arm in pain just as Natalia started to speak.

"Aha! Here it is! Yes! He _was_ the one that ordered the polyjuice. And look. He signed this letter, _A.M._ Alastor Moody. It makes sense. You're right. We need to go to Professor Dumbledore with this. Immediately."

Severus nodded and swept around, rushing out of the room, Natalia following quickly behind. As they left the dungeons and went outside to find Dumbledore, all the students were being ushered back inside. Natalia and Severus had to push through the rush of students as if fighting the current in the ocean. Natalia was confused. The event couldn't be over already. Even if it was, the students and faculty would surely be celebrating down near the maze.

They finally found Dumbledore bringing up the rear, corralling the straggling students inside. Severus reached for his arm and stopped the man. The pain on his face was evident and Dumbledore needn't say anything to him. He looked to Natalia instead. "What is wrong, Ms. Rook?" he asked quickly.

"We have something to tell you Headmaster, but what is going on with the students. Is the event over already?"

He nodded. "There has been a tragedy and I wanted the students to stay safe. The remaining champions are with other professors."

"Harry. Where is Harry, Albus?" Severus asked frantically.

"Why, he is with Alastor. As an Auror, Harry has many things to tell him about what happened. He saw the Diggory boy be killed by Tom Riddle."

At that simple statement, what little color was left in Severus' face drained very quickly. He clutched at his arm again and groaned. "Not again. Albus, no!"

"I am sorry, my boy. We must rally the troops. And you must prepare yourself to become the spy yet again. It is imperative that you do this. For the Potters."

Natalia scrunched her eyebrows in confusion. Tom Riddle? That was He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Voldemort killed Cedric? Harry! He's with Mad-Eye. He was in danger!

"Professor. I think Harry is in trouble. I have a mind to think that Professor Moody isn't who he says he is. I have a letter here that I believe is signed by him. It is one of my customer correspondences that was requesting Polyjuice. I think whoever he is is using the Polyjuice to be Professor Moody. And if Harry is with him…" She trailed off. Dumbledore got a frantic look on his face, turned to the castle and rushed in. After calling Minerva to accompany him, Natalia and Severus followed them both to Mad-Eye's office.

They had arrived just in time, for as soon as they burst through the heavy oak door, the group saw 'Professor Moody's' hands tightly grasping Harry's throat, tightening with every second. Natalia threw out a quick stunning spell and Harry gasped for breath, hurtling out of the chair he was in and throwing himself as far away from the Auror as he could get. Dumbledore cast a quick total Body Bind Charm on 'Moody' and then an _Ennerverate_ to bring him to. Severus and Natalia were both glaring at the man, while all four in the group had wands pointed at him.

'Moody' flicked out his tongue across his dry lips, sighing. With a smirk, he said, "The Dark Lord has returned. I will be honored above all for the services I did for him. He has _**RETURNED**_!"

Dumbledore frowned and asked, "Who are you?" The imposter just laughed. "Where is the real Alastor Moody!" he exclaimed, getting irate. The fraud kept that condescending smirk on his face and kept silent.

Natalia was getting irritated. She rushed up to the pretender, put her Yew, unicorn hair core wand up to his neck and growled out, "Where. Is. Mad-Eye. Moody?"

The imposter started to look nervous and flicked his eyes over to a trunk in the corner of the office. Dumbledore immediately rushed over to it, waved his wand to remove the many wards and locks that protected it and looked inside. The trunk had an Undetectable Extension Charm on it to make it nearly bottomless, yet at the bottom was the haggard, emaciated, yet the still alive body of the _real_ Alastor Moody.

"Are you alright down there, Mad-Eye?" Dumbledore hollered. He heard a weak voice respond.

"Better now, Albus. But I have to say, I quit."

Dumbledore chuckled, relieved that his friend was alive and said, "I understand, my friend. We will get you out of there momentarily. Just sit tight." A groan was his only response.

Natalia moved her attention back to the imposter and gasped in surprise as she saw a rather violent transformation of the man going back to his original appearance. Her quiet noise drew the attention of the others in the room and Severus growled.

"Barty Crouch Jr. I thought you died in Azkaban."

Barty just laughed, a bit hysterically. "That was my mother. The fool. She couldn't see her baby rot for something he '_just couldn't have done,_'" He mocked in a feminine tone. "She took Polyjuice to look like me. Polyjuice that the lovely Ms. Rook made for her with the handsome advance my mother paid. You have been ever so helpful to the Dark Lord. He is pleased," Barty said with a sneer.

Natalia stayed passive, not giving away the disgust she felt for herself that she had helped this man hurt so many.

"How did you do it, Barty? How did you capture Alastor in the first place?" Dumbledore asked, seemingly interested. Barty just laughed.

"I had some help. Ambushed him. We were following him for weeks. The old paranoid git was hard to get, but we finally got him." Barty laughed maniacally again, flicking his tongue over his lips again, like a snake.

"Who helped you?" the Headmaster demanded.

"Pettigrew," a small voice said. Everyone turned to see Harry standing now, hands clenched into fists at his sides. "Pettigrew helped Voldemort."

"You dare speak the Dark Lord's name!?" Barty hissed angrily. Harry just looked back passively, not saying anything to the man. He looked back to Dumbledore.

"We were in a cemetery. The Cup was a portkey and it took us there. As soon as we arrived, Wormtail killed Cedric with the Avada curse. It was so fast. There was nothing I could do. Then, Peter captured me, holding me against a gravestone. It was Voldemort's father's grave. Peter took a bone from the grave, put it in a cauldron, sliced off his hand and put that in there too. Then he came to me, cut my arm, and put some of my blood in the cauldron as well. Afterward, he put in Voldemort's…. _Body_, I guess? It looked like an old, wrinkled baby and in moments he emerged from the cauldron. He looks like a monster. His nose was gone, his eyes flashed an evil red. He didn't look human, not at all. Professor, what does this mean?" Harry asked, looking pointedly at Dumbledore.

The old man's blue eyes were not twinkling. He had a grim look on his face and sighed. "It means, Harry, that your blood no longer protects you. When you were a baby, and your parents sacrificed themselves to save you, they did a rare and nearly unheard of type of magic. Love magic. As cliche as that sounds, it happens but only out of an act of true love. Because they died protecting you, their love magic protected you from the 'killing' curse. That is why it rebounded and destroyed Tom Riddle all those years ago."

Barty hissed at the casual use of his master's name, but everyone ignored him. Dumbledore set to the task of extracting the true Alastor Moody from the enchanted trunk as he continued explaining.

"Their blood runs through your veins, and as such protected you all these years as well. It is why you were able to exterminate Voldemort as he was attached to Professor Quirrell's person. Just your touch was enough to destroy him because he can not survive love. He is an empty human, Harry. He doesn't know what love is. Only greed, power, envy and hatred. The love your parents showed you protected you for these 12 years, but now that he used your blood to come back… I am afraid it may not work anymore."

Aurors arrived shortly after his speech. A luminescent green Dark Mark was floating in the sky and the other professors alerted the Ministry. They got there as soon as they could. Apparently, Barty Crouch Jr. got a little carried away and marked Harry for dead before he finished the task. The Death Eater was taken out of the room kicking and screaming obscenities all the while.

Mad-Eye Moody was taken to St. Mungo's for evaluation and intensive care. He was terribly malnourished and severely dehydrated. The only reason he was alive was for the use of his hair for the Polyjuice. With that reasoning, Crouch gave him the bare necessities to survive. It would take a long time for the paranoid Auror to recover fully.

Once the hectic activities seemed to be over, Dumbledore invited the group back to his office as there was much to talk about still.

"I will order up some food and drink. I am sure you are all famished."

Harry looked sick from just the thought of eating at that moment and Natalia gave him a reassuring squeeze on his shoulder. He looked level at her and gave her a half-hearted smile. She shrugged and motioned for him to follow Dumbledore and Minerva. With Severus and herself following in the back, Natalia took his hand and held it for dear life, afraid of what was to come.

When they got to the headmaster's office, he transfigured some spare furniture into simple chairs for everyone to sit. He too sat, summoned a House-Elf, and ordered food for the group. The elf nodded obediently and with a smile and a _pop_, disapperated to do his duty. Dumbledore looked at the group for a minute, pondering what to say to start.

"I will just cut to the chase. Harry, because Riddle used your blood in the ritual tonight, you will not be able to return to your Aunt and Uncle's house. As they were family to your mother, the love magic transferred to them as they are your next of kin. We will have to relocate them of course, for their safety as well as find arrangements for you."

Harry interjected just then. "I can stay at the Weasley's. They always offer to take me for the summer to get away from the Dursley's."

Dumbledore smiled good-naturedly. "I am sure they would accommodate you Harry, but they have quite a full house as it is. Besides, there is someone that has been wanting to take care of you for the past 12 years. Your godfather, Sirius Black." Harry got a grin on his face at the same time Severus growled in irritation.

"Albus, you can't be serious. Allowing that nitwit to care for 'The-Boy-Who-Lived.' Honestly. He is rash and foolish and-"

"And he has survived 12 years in Azkaban for his mistakes, Severus. Plenty of time considering he didn't do the actual crime that got him there in the first place. Twelve years is a bit overkill for a bit of hexing in school, isn't it?" the old man asked, his eyes twinkling mischievously again. Severus just frowned in response.

Just at that moment, Hooky, the house-elf from earlier arrived with food and drink for the group and silently set it up for them. As quietly as he arrived, he left with another _pop_.

Dumbledore grabbed a few of the finger sandwiches that were presented and took a bite of one. "Now. Where were we?" He took a minute to chew and swallow and then said, "Ah yes. If you would like, you can go live with Sirius. I am sure he would be amenable about that. I have some business to discuss with him anyway and so I would be around often. Even though he is not cleared of the crime that he was accused of all those years ago, he will be and all will be well."

"Brilliant," Harry exclaimed, a bit excited.

"Besides the fact that a student has been killed and the Dark Lord is back," Severus said, his usual frown still prominent on his features. Natalia nudged him and he looked over to her, giving an innocent shrug. His words knocked the smile off of the young boy's face and suddenly everything got very grim.

"Ah, yes. Young, Mister Diggory. A life snuffed out too soon. His father was, of course, notified and I assume he will be here shortly since I invited him up to the office for a quiet place to be. Amos is devastated, and rightly so, of course. He was quite proud of his son."

The room grew somber as they all thought of Cedric. Natalia hadn't known him well, but she had noticed how kind he was to Harry even though the rest of the school harassed him for cheating to get into the tournament. Cedric was a kind boy and a fellow Hufflepuff. Natalia wiped a tear away.

"It isn't fair. He was so young. Barely of age. He shouldn't have died," Natalia said quietly. Severus went to comfort her but saw Potter looking at her strangely and stayed a safe distance away. It broke his heart to see her in distress and wanted nothing more than to bring her into his arms and hold her. He wanted nothing else than to promise that she would be safe. That he would keep her safe. Because he loved her.

Severus frowned at the realization of what he just admitted to himself. Did he _love_ her?


End file.
